Trinity Arc
by Ancient2
Summary: Three crossing souls. One lead by glory, one by vengeance, the last by redemption. All come together as one to the Far East Branch, each touching the life of the other and the Den members. Three God Eaters starting as strangers, then slowly turning into friendship. Leading each other slowly to grace, may their God Arcs guide them to Serenity.
1. Chapter 1

Hi, everyone. This FF story is a little special, because it's a co-op story. Funny story, one of my Reviewers wrote to me, asking me if we could do a story together and I was like 'why not, they were nice enough to ask'. So we've been working together for a while now to build up this story. Which is a lot of fun, we both bring something to the table and it surprisingly fits well with each other, my co-writer has a brilliant mind so I've been enjoying working with him. And the best part is, we both still surprise each other by not giving a lot of our part of the story away. Believe me, I think you'll like what we've concocted together.

So in that regard, Gods Eater Burst and all its characters and manga are own by Namco Bandai Games, Inc- Yuu Kannagi from the manga included. However, Karen Owaga and her parents are own by SanguisAnima. While my protagonist and her relatives are own by me. So we hope you enjoy the story as much as we've enjoyed creating it.

xxx

Co-Author's Note:

"Text"= Normal speech

"[Text]"= speech in Japanese

_Text_= Thoughts

For the most part, this will follow cannon Gods Eater: Burst storylines, with minor changes that DO NOT change how the gameplay story goes.

Well, for the most part, anyway.

Consider yourself warned.

**Trinity Arc**

The Forging of a Sniper Samurai

Part 1

The year is 2071. The world, as humanity knew it, was being ruled and devoured by the Aragami: creatures that seem to have appeared out of nowhere, composed of nothing but clustered Oracle Cells that continue to consume and devour in a never-ending hunger. Sometimes it craved for nonliving things; other times it craved for something more... Organic.

Humanity had been knocked down a notch on the planet's food chain, and has lost their place as the dominate species. The Aragami had devoured humanity across the planet, discriminating against none. All was seen as dinner in the eyes of the hungry beast.

Many of what remained of the human population has survived by protecting themselves behind Anti-Aragami Walls. These Oracle Cell-repelling walls were created by a Europe-base, then-pharmaceutical company called Fenrir and humanity has depended upon them for their survival since then.

In order to preserve humanity's place on the planet, Fenrir had created beasts of their own to fight these gluttonous beasts- God Eaters that devour the Aragami when nothing else could. The technology and warfare of man alone couldn't stand a chance against the Aragami; all hope depended upon the God Eaters and their God Arcs that could stop the regenerating process of the Aragami's Oracle Cells.

There were a lot of battles fought against the Aragami. Many God Eaters were lost during the years. Some battles were a victory toward humanity; others were a loss of life. None of the God Eaters knew if today would be their last day, or if it would be tomorrow. Each day was a blessing in their line of work, and they would take none of it for granted.

In the Far East Branch, in the region once known as Japan, this belief was a truth to its God Eaters.

.xxxxx.

After the recent lost of their First Unit Leader, Lindow Amamiya, the Branch's Den was still in shock at the lost of such a strong fighter. They would have never thought that he would die, sacrificing his life in order to save his team during a freak accident out on the field.

To be brutally honest, most thought he would die years later after he retired, either from alcohol poisoning or kidney failure, with the way he guzzled his and his childhood friend's beer rations on his own.

But it was no accident, as the members of the First Unit soon found out: it was a carefully-planned elimination by the Branch's Director, Johannes von Schicksal. Lindow had gotten too close to the truth of the Director's plans, and was taken out of the picture because of it.

Soon after, the physically and mentally demanding position of First Unit Leader was filled by the rookie New-Type God Eater of the Unit, Yuu Kannagi. It was Yuu who helped the First Unit pull themselves together after their devastating loss. He had saved Alisa from her tragic past with his warm Resonance; he had broken Soma out of his inner shell of self-hatred; he even helped Kota find the right path into protecting his family and friends.

Together with his team, he had stopped the Director and his plans of having the Colossal Aragami, Nova, from devouring the planet in a planned Apocalypse. It was a great battle they had won, but they had paid a heavy price and lost a friend in the process.

Shio, the little Aragami girl from the wastelands, had taken Nova and the Devouring Apocalypse to the Moon in order to save everyone from the final feast. On the Moon she remained since then; however, many lives were lost from the crazed Aragami during the awakening of Nova. It took many days of healing before the citizens of Fenrir had recovered from their loses.

Things seemed to have calmed into a lull around the Den. That is, until the Immortal King came into scene: Hannibal, the mysterious dragon-type Aragami.

Nno matter how many times they extracted the core it would instantaneously, miraculousy regenerate. It took a lot of research from the Branch's Acting Director and genius scientist, Dr. Sakaki, before they finally found a way to halt the regeneration process.

But before that could happen, Yuu's God Arc's core had been damage during a fight with the Hannibal, forcing him out of combat for some time. Even so, he still found himself in the thick of battle, right within the Den when Aragami somehow managed to sneak through the AA Wall and attack the Den itself. On top of that, he had exposed himself to possible Oracle Cell Infection due to grabbing the previous First Unit Leader's- Lindow's- God Arc during a surprise Aragami attack on the Den.

He had saved Licca's, the leading God Arc engineer and maintenance manager, and everyone in the Den's life, but had risked himself being devouring by the foreign Oracle Cells of Lindow's God Arc.

Surprisingly, he had come out of it okay, much to everyone's relief and anger that he would even try to use someone else's God Arc. He had really gotten torn into by everyone in the Den, but they were all just glad that he was okay.

But once the scare had went down, all was turned back to normal... As normal as can be, aside from the atrocity that Dr. Sakaki invented, which he christened 'First Love Juice', and tried to pass off as a drink.

.xxxxx.

Despite it all, everything was more or less normal in the Den. The Far East Branch was getting new recruit New-Types. Yuu had been called into the Entrance by Tsubaki to introduce him to the new recruits. They seemed like an energetic bunch to Yuu, two girls along with Ren and a new guy.

"These are the new recruits, all highly touted new God Eaters." Tsubaki introduced Yuu to them, giving Yuu a chance to look them all over in individual introductions.

"I've been assigned to the Second Unit, as of today..." The first female recruit announced. Her golden hair was neatly tied into a bun on the side of her head. And her face, although stern and serious, had friendly blue eyes that complimented her Blues Street Top and Pants. "I'm Annette Koenig."

"And I've been assigned to the Third Unit." The young man next to her introduced as well. His spike raven hair was held back by a yellow bandana. Unlike the female next to him, he was more relaxed as the nervous exposed itself from his face through his expressive brown eyes. His Acid Street Top and Pants told Yuu that he was most likely from the Outer Ghettos in the Branch he came from. "My name is Federico Caruso."

"..." Yuu nodded to them both, they both seemed friendly enough, but scared. In that sense, they were both not unlike most rookies when they first enter the Den. And the female had put on a false bravado, a way to shield herself from the trials to come.

But then he turned to the last female in the group. This one had air about her that told Yuu not to take her lightly.

Her blue eyes were sharp and fierce, but not cold. Yuu couldn't tell whether her hair was a dirty blond or a really light brunette, either way its sheen would make it shine brightly in the light. The shiny locks, mostly hidden by her black and red & white stripped beanie hat, only reached to her shoulders, long in the front but short in the back. Her skin had lightly been touched by the sun, but judging from her looks Yuu could guess that she was a native of this Branch. Her serious face threw him off guard when he saw her bold Black Sniper Coat and pants. Yuu couldn't pinpoint what it was, but... something about her told him not to overlook her.

"Karen... I'll be in your Unit." Was all she would say as an introduction. She gave him a slight 60 degree bow without taking her eyes off him, one would give to your peers based off the olden traditions of this region.

As Karen looked at her new Unit Leader, all he could do was rubbed the back of his head and give her a cheeky grin. She felt that kind and friendly aura about him; he wasn't one with hidden agendas she would have to worry about like most people in Fenrir with power. But then he seemed to look off to the far left side of them, probably already bored of being there. All in all, it did give her time to look him over without having him catch her doing it.

His spiky hair was a light brown, but still darker than hers, more like a walnut color. His blue eyes were a lighter hue than hers, and softer too. His skin made him look like he hadn't been out in the sun as much, making her concerned if he had the fighting experience necessary for her to follow under him without worry. And he seemed like a simple, care-free kind of guy: Formal Blues, top and bottom, the guy didn't strive to shine out much from the others in this place.

The only thing that made him seem to stand out from all the other faces was the small grin that never left his face.

Talk about boring with a capital B, or plain with a blinking neon pink capital P.

But if there was one thing Karen had learned through out her life, it was to not judge a book by its cover.

"You know more about New-Type God Eater techniques." Tsubaki said, bringing his attention back to the group in whole. "Look after them. Understood?"

This woman, Tsubaki, clearly had a lot of trust from him, judging by the impression she had left on Karen so far. Tsubaki seemed like the serious type, always on the hour and always ready for anything the Aragami through their way. To hear her strong voice soften as she made this request seemed highly out of character for her so far. But if someone as strong willed as Tsubaki had entrusted them into his hands, it would seem that Karen could trust him as well. At least... give him a chance.

"It's good to meet you!" The other recruits greeted to him, while Karen nodded in acknowledgement. Yuu simply nodded back to them in greeting as well.

"Good." Tsubaki praised at the smooth introduction and then went back to business. "Rookies, report to Dr. Sakaki later for your medical check ups. That will be all."

Five hours earlier...

Karen stood in front of what looked like a table, and a rather long, single edged blade. The blade's nakago was in plain sight; so, she was simply to hold onto _that_?

Well, this certainly was a new spin on checking one's aptitude.

Aptitude to _what_, though, she had absolutely no clue.

Knowing nothing is as easy as it seems, Karen placed her arm on the slot while her hand curled around the sword's grip: firmly, yet loosely, as she was accustomed to. And she waited for the inevitable surprise.

Although Karen was expecting it, she could still not fight the surprised gasp that came with the top part of the table crashing down on her wrist, and the acute feeling of something puncturing - no, _eating_ would be the correct term for it - through the skin of her forearm, going down to her muscles. It almost felt like going for her bones.

All throughout the ordeal, Karen kept quiet, although her face was a mask of pain. _If I remember correctly how Johannes described it, her behavior now is similar to what Yuu showed when he went through the same thing_, Sakaki thought to himself as he watched the proceedings through the observation chamber.

His grin grew wider as the Aptitude Test completed, marking another New-Type God Eater for the Far East Branch. "Well! Congratulations on passing the Aptitude Test, uh... Karen! You can exit the room now. Oh, and don't hesitate to tell anyone if you feel anything, okay?"

* * *

The medical checkup felt anything but.

All she was asked to do was lie down on a cot, and answer a few questions from both the medical officer and Acting Director Paylor Sakaki (judging from the voice Karen heard earlier in the Aptitude Test, it was him who congratulated her). The rest was pretty hazy at best, and the last thing Karen remembered was getting sleepy. Now, here she was, three hours later, in what was likely her room from this point onward.

[_It's not all that bad_], she thought to herself. A small couch with an antiquated cassette player ([_Seriously? Those things still exist?_]), some hardbound training manuals, a kitchenette with a small personal fridge, and a single bed that would no doubt fit her moderate frame.

The room in itself had a homely feel to it, with the holo-window display showing a bright, sunny day. The flooring looked and sounded like wood; Fenrir's techs really went all-out if they replicated the look, feel and sound of good old-fashioned wood. [_Just perfect for meditation sessions_].

Karen stretched her arms as she stood up. [_That was certainly a nice nap_]... She noticed her two bags on the floor near the Terminal in the room, the shiny combination locks still in place as she remembered them. [_Ah, so they brought my bags in._] She knelt down and quickly spun the dials, and proceeded to take out her clothes and other materials.

When she opened the door a few minutes later, she saw a young man wearing a green jacket, blue pants, had brown hair and a cap worn backwards. Something about him seemed familiar. Just as Karen approached, he turned to face her.

Karen's blood felt slightly cold as she recognized the young man: Shun Ogawa, her elder distant cousin.

If he even considered her a cousin, or if he knew Karen was from a different Ogawa family branch.

"Hey, **rookie**... I was about to go get you, since Tsubaki asked me to." Shun's voice told Karen all she needed to know. [He knows who I am...] "Take the Section Elevator to the Entrance Section and see Tsubaki. Rookies have to work hard for the chance to earn rewards, you know. Well... Good luck, **kid**!"

Karen would've liked a retort, but Shun already left ahead of her. "[_Ugh. Still a cocky jerk,_]" Karen muttered to herself as she pressed the elevator button.

* * *

"There you are!"

Karen didn't move one bit. She felt a hand lightly tap her shoulder a few seconds later, with the same voice calling to her. "Hey there! Your name's Karen, right?"

She turned to the person addressing her, giving another half bow when she recognized it was Yuu. "[Yes, that's correct.]" Karen's eyes slightly widened when she realized she had spoken in Japanese, and repeated her statement in English.

Yuu just chuckled and waved his hand dismissively. "Hey, don't sweat it. I got you the first time, but I'd suggest you use English when the others are around, alright?"

Karen nodded. "Alright, you'll be accompanying me in a mission. Make sure you have your loadout prepared in the terminal, and let me know if you need any help okay?"

She gave another bow before proceeding to the terminal behind them. Karen modified her God Arc blade to an Ice Katana, changed the gun to Max then upgraded to a Kaspar, and switched to a Support Shield before upgrading to a Backup Shield. She also fiddled with the Bullet Editor a bit, softly clucking her tongue a few times.

"Wow, looks like you have a bit of stuff prepped..." Yuu whistled in appreciation as he leaned in slightly, glancing at Karen's terminal screen. He sheepishly chuckled after the blonde cleared her throat and noticing her pointed glance at him.

About half an hour later, Yuu and Karen, along with the other two new recruits, arrived in the City of Mercy drop-off point. "Alright, just like how Lindow taught me, I'm gonna pass it on to you." He held up his hand and counted off with each finger as he continued. "You have five orders: first, don't die. Second, if your number's up, get out. Third, hide. Fourth, catch the enemy off guard and blast it. Lastly, don't run away from living. Got it?"

Karen nodded. "Understood."

Yuu shouldered his God Arc. "Alright! Let's get your first kill racked up!"

... Author's Notes ...

Nay, none for today. But I will leave you with a challenge, a game really, see if you can when I'm writing or if SanguisAnima is. It's loads of fun, and simply hard to do sense we both blend our style so well together. (-^_^-)


	2. Chapter 2

First Unit Leader: Yuu Kannagi

Codename: Yuu

Hairstyle:1; Color:2

Face:9; Skin: 1

Voice: I don't know, he's from the Manga. Probably Voice 1, I guess.

Top: Formal Top:Blue; Bottom: Formal Bottom:Blue

God Arc: Silent Cry EX; Clemencor EX; Tear Stone EX

Control Unit: Gods Eater

Upgrades: Retaliation Squad; Special Moves

Rise of the New Recruit

*** Scaly Thrush Mission ***

"Alright, let's get start the mission." Yuu said as he took the lead, jumping off the edge of the Starting Point and entering into the City of Mercy.

"Let's go." "Let's start the mission." "Let's begin." All the rookies said at once. Frederico and Annette had enthusiastic excitement in their voices, with a hint of nervousness from Frederico. Karen had a lack luster quality to her voice, as if she was watching a boring Burgarally repeat for a third time.

Yuu had lead the new recruits through the alleyway, taking a turn to the left, judging by the direction of where the Vajra's roar came from. From the corner of his eye, he could see the Vajra jumping down into the building to the left of the open space, from the hole inside. Signally the rookies to halt, they all hide behind the building's opening wall.

Backs turned as they readied themselves for the fight, backs turned to the wall and heads looking toward the buildings opening. Annette's and Frederico's breathing were loud and heavy in nervousness as they were about to face their first Aragami. Their hearts beat loudly on their chest, as its ecstatic beat rang in their ears. But Karen was as quiet as a stone, breathing calm, her heart in a steady beat. In a world of chaos she was the picture of tranquil. Her eyes were stone, but her grip on her God Arc was firm. She was ready for what awaited her beyond that opening.

Yuu nodded his head, the signal was given, they charged in. The Vajra roared at its unwanted intruders, readying a row of lightning spears. Karen had ran around them and just went after the target.

"Hajimas." Karen said to the Vajra, no time to give her opponent the proper bow before combat, she just charged in to the fight.

"I'm joining the fray!" Frederico informed the group as he gave Karen some supporting fire.

"I'll back you up." Annette was going to change into Gun-mode to give some supporting fire as well, but due to her God Arcs massive size and weight it would change modes slowly. Leaving her open to the Vajra's leap as she in between modes. "Ahh!"

"Back off!" Yuu barked at the Vajra, slicing it back as it knocked Annette to the ground. He pushed it back away from her so she could safely stand on her feet again.

"T-thank you very much!" Annette said, blushing in embarrassment that she would let the Aragami get her like that, not even one minute into the mission. She was an offensive type and she was making herself seem weak among the new recruits of New-Types. The blonde decided she would have to redeem herself. Changing into Gun-mode as planned, she began to fire at the Vajra's face. "Fire!"

"I got'cha." Karen smirked as she changed half-way into gun mode and fired at the Vajra, making it take a step back. Once it exposed its lower belly, she changed back all the way into Blade-mode. Going through a serious of hard slices, alternating from one hand to another in a 1-2-3 pattern, she finished it off with a small Devouring bite into the Vajra's chest, only extracting one Aragami bullet. "No problem."

"Nice one, Karen." Yuu praised as he did an upper cut from the side of the Vajra. Always moving to confuse the Vajra and keep its attention off of the others. With her one Aragami bullet, Karen fired a Team-bullet at Yuu.

"Aragami-bullet." Was the only thing she said to inform him as she blatantly fired at him.

"Whoa, thanks. I got this!" Yuu boasted as the Burst kicked in.

Staying in Gun-mode, Karen began to fire bulls-eye shots into the Vajra's face.

"Here you go." Karen nonchalantly said to the Vajra as she took off its head armor. "It's cracked."

"Let's mow it down!" Yuu encouraged as him and the other recruits changed into Blade-mode to take the Vajra head on. Just as they were slashing into its hind legs, the small hairs on Yuu began to rise. He knew what that meant. "Get back! It's about to spark a charge!"

"?" Not knowing what he meant, the recruits blindly followed his example and dashed back; just in time to avoid the electric sphere the Vajra surrounded itself with. "!"

Changing into Gun-mode, they began to fire at it from a safe distance. While Karen, on the other hand, changed back into Blade-mode and began slicing at the Vajra, once it let down its electric sphere.

"Ah!" Karen calmly let out for the most part, in a hiss, as something had hit her from the back.

"I'm sorry!" Federico had apologized to her. He had accidentally misfired at her while trying to land a hit on the Vajra's now open weak spot in the head.

The shot was harmless to God Eaters, only a minor annoyance in the battlefield. He meant no harm, so Karen held no grudge. Giving him a nod, indicating that it was okay, she turned back to Vajra and began to focus back on it.

"Get to know the Aragami's weak spots. Every species has a different weak spot, each one more vulnerable than another." Yuu instructed, giving them a lecture on the field while getting the job done. Striking at the Vajra's paw armor with his blade as he continue to talk. "Vajra's have a weak spot in their paws. But a more advance species of Vajra, like the Prithivi Mata have a weak spot in their torso instead. Once you find the weak spot and destroy its armor, the battle should go down more smoothly. And if you destroy it, you'll most like reaped better rewards from it after we collect the materials after the completion of the mission."

"Yes sir!" Annette and Frederico said at the same time, while Karen simply nodded in understanding.

Deciding that it had had enough from the pesky little humans, the Vajra made a run for it to lick its wounds. Charging pass Annette like a football running back, it made a beeline for the back alleys behind the building. The tiger Aragami tensed itself up in front of a sheer wall, before springing into the air with catlike grace and disappearing partially from the God Eaters' view.

"(Gasp!)" Annette gasped as the Vajra hurtled passed her, knocking the wind out of the buster-hammer wielder and pushing her back hard into the wall. Before she could feel a sign discomfort or pain from her back, Yuu had shot her a Recovery bullet, making her let out a sigh of relief.

"And also, it would be best if you carried around some Recovery bullets. Lasers, missiles, bombs, I don't care. Just remember that you look out for more than just yourself when you're out here. Look out for your team and they'll look out for you."

"Right!"

"It's getting away..." Karen informed as the Vajra turned the corner, disappearing completely from view.

"Eh? Ah, right... after it." Yuu said as he got his head back into the game. The Vajra didn't go very far; it had stopped in Sector M to stuff itself with salvage material, as if that distance would be enough to lose them. Yuu took a Devouring bite at the Vajra from behind its back. "Hmph, don't underestimate us!"

"Here you go." Yuu said to them as he gave each of them one Team-bullet.

"This is it!" Annette said in excitement as she experienced her first Burst. Going crazy with adrenaline, she hammered down hard on the Vajra with her Buster God Arc, knocking the Vajra off its paws. Once on the ground the others came in for strike; however, Karen had remained in her place.

"Karen, what's wrong?" Yuu asked in concern as he noticed her just standing there.

"It's not right to strike a downed opponent. I will wait until it rises on its feet again."

"Karen, we can't afford to give Aragami that common courtesy. Special treatment like that could decrease the chances of survival on the field."

Karen adjusted her hold on her katana, letting the point slightly dig into the soft earth. "You practice your principals, and I shall practice mine."

"Hn," the Vajra was dead before he could give a counter response so he let her comment go. She was still technically learning; perhaps she will soon grow out of this habit. For his and her sake, he hoped that it would be soon. "All right, good job everyone."

"Mission cleared." Frederico sighed in relief.

"Everything went our way this time." Annette happily chirped out as they headed back to the Starting Point. Karen had let them pass her, arms crossed for a second, before following them slightly behind.

"Nothing note worthy happened." Karen calmly said allowed to herself, closing her eyes for a second as she calmed her breathing back to normal after the rush of battle.

"Wha? Are you kidding? The Far East is a brutal war zone." Frederico huffed out in shock at her nonchalance about her first time out in the wastelands. Here she was a calm and kept together, while he was still slightly shaking from the after fear from the battle.

"This really is a battlefield." Annette nervously admitted as she kept looking around the area in slight paranoia of a surprise Aragami attack.

"Hey, hey, no worries. My home turf may seem crazy, but it's not all that bad." Yuu assured to them. "We'll work our way up into facing the Aragami confidently eventually. Right now, we'll just focus on staying alive."

"..." Annette and Frederico nervously nodded at Yuu, not all a hundred percent believing in his words.

"Sleepy..." Was all Karen said in response as she stifled a yawn from leaving her body.

And like that she had broken the ice that was slowly building up tension among the new recruits. How could someone fresh out on the field be so nonchalant about the gore of the daily grind they would have to face in the future? This new recruit was strange.

Once they had gotten on the Chopper, heading back to the Den and parting ways after they dropped off their God Arcs at the Hanger, Yuu ran up to Karen to try and talk to her. She was on his team now, so he felt he should get to know her.

"Karen, hey wait up!" Yuu said, as he waved a hand at her. Running up to her before stopping a yard in front as she turned around to face him.

"..." Karen didn't usually like just anybody calling her by her first name, let alone without the proper honorifics. But since he was her superior, and she would give him the benefit of the doubt that he was sightly older than her, she would let it slide.

"Where did you learn how to fight like that?"

"My Father..." She answered, but a little out of the social circle, she was struggling to start a conversation with her new leader. "Where did you learn how to fight?"

"!" His eyes widen for a moment at her question, but then they began to sadden as he looked down to the floor. His eyes clouded in a memory. "My mentor, the former leader... he showed me the ropes."

"The one that's dead...?" She most likely would have pushed for more, but the melancholy in his eyes made her stop. "I see..."

"He died protecting his team. Heh, that was the way he would most likely want to go. Hard to believe how strong we have become since then, perhaps we could have saved him as we are now."

"The past cannot be changed," Karen said, ceasing his 'what if' thoughts. "Only the future."

"Hm, you're right... the past will remain in the past. Unmoving and set in stone... Well... you said you were tired so I'm not going to hold you for long." Yuu said, stretching his arms into the air as he popped his back. "We're done for the day. Enjoy the rest of it however you please. Go get a snack, take a nap, look around the Den, do whatever you want. Your fellow teammates are still out on a long mission, I'll introduce them to you another day once they get back. These Hannibals have got them and the rest of the Den on their toes."

"..." At Karen's sides, her fists were clinched.

"In the mean time, why don't you get to know the others in the Den. They'll be the people fighting along side you in the future, so I think it's best that you form a bond with them. We stand together, and we survive together."

"Hm, alright. I'll keep that in mind."


	3. Chapter 3

First Unit Recruit: Karen Ogawa

Codename: Karen

Hairstyle: 7; Color: 4

Face: 6; Skin: 2

Voice: 9

Top: Sniper Coat:Black; Bottom: Sniper Pants:Black

God Arc: Glacier Katana X; Agathe X; Aiding Shield X

Control Unit: Healer ... for now

Upgrades: Lock-On Kit; OP Kit 2 ... for now

The Blood of the God Eaters

In a way, Karen was following Yuu's advice- to an extent. She was getting to know her fellow God Eaters in her own way. In the peaceful quiet, she sat on the Entrance's Lounge Area's couch, taking sips from a can of First Love Juice as the day went by. She had heard from many that the drink was terrible, but... as odd as it may sound she kind of grew fond of the taste. It was sour and bitter sweet all at the same time, dancing on her tongue with exotic and new taste sensations.

The sky had changed as time went by, shifting to multiple colors of glorious orange hues and pink, warming the Den with its gentle glow.

Karen just sat there, staring at the scenery as God Eaters move around the Entrance and went about their lives. Through her seat on the couch she could see them, in ways most wouldn't immediately be able to by simply talking to them. Everyday they would go about the same routine, grateful for the gift it was to still be there. To still be able to continue the same routine for another day, when tomorrow is never promised to them.

The job hazards were known, it was as clear as broad daylight. But they still would go, they continued to fight the Aragami, regardless of the dangers.

Ostensibly it was for the money, but under the good paychecks, they did it to protect their families. To provide for them in ways that would be a struggle in the Branch's normal work force.

At times, Karen was envious of them. She wondered how it felt to them to have a home to return to; to have someone waiting for you to welcome you home during your off days. It has been so long since she had experienced the sensation, it was almost like a fleeting memory.

"I was wondering where you've been hiding."

"?!" Karen was caught off guard by the familiar smooth voice. Turning toward the new arrival, she was greeted by a familiar face. "Gina-neesan..."

"Karen..." A small smile slipped onto Gina's face as she greeted her. "It's been awhile."

"Yes it has." Karen's eyes warmed up at the sight of the veteran Gods Eater.

Gina, her older cousin. She was related to Karen from her mother's side of the family, being the daughter of her mother's brother. Gina was one of the few siblings that she could get along with.

Over the years they would continue to keep contact with each other through letters, though they still had a small rivalry with each other, even has kids. They would compete together over almost anything when ever their families would visit each other. They'd race to see how was faster, throw rocks to see who had the better aim, and even do various challenges to see who had the most endurance.

As they grew older, that rivalry grew to who had the better shot as their parents would take them to the Range. The Dickinson family were know for their accuracy and gunslinger ways, and Karen's mother wanted to preserve that tradition in her daughter. Along with Karen's Uncle with Gina.

At times, Karen would win with their little rivalries, but most of the time Gina was the victor. Not for the fact she was the older of the two, but mostly for her extraordinary skill. Gina was considered the gifted child of the Dickinson family, a prodigy in the eyes of their parents. At times, as a child, Karen couldn't help but feel jealous of Gina. She was so good at almost everything, but at the same time... Karen wanted to be just like her. Karen admired and respected her older cousin and wanted to grow up to be someone like her. And in a way, she did...

"You've grown taller since the last time I've seen you." Gina said as she looked Karen over for a second. "But all in all, you still look the same."

"Same goes for you. Thank you for the supplies, they helped me greatly make a good start as a Gods Eater."

"It was nothing, really. I had no use for those items and simply wanted to clean out my Storage."

"I see..." Gina may have said it was only a whim, but Karen new better. As soon as Karen had written Gina, saying that she was going to become a Gods Eater, Gina had immediately sent her all those materials and Aragami parts. She even had them Expressed shipped.

Gina may have acted indifferent, but Karen knew she cared. She smiled, looking her cousin over. Her eyes saddened once she came upon Gina's eyes... or her lack of one. "You haven't changed at all... and yet changed so much."

"Mph, that's a little contradicting of you." Gina said with a hint of sarcasm as she rested a hand on her hip. Karen had gotten out of her seat to place a sympathetic hand on the veteran sniper's cheek, under her eye-patch.

Karen's voice soften a bit. "What happened, neesan? Why didn't you write me about this?"

"Why would I bore you over useless matters?" Gina countered, gently swatting Karen's hand away. Her good eye took on a look like ecstasy before speaking again. "But I'll tell you this. It felt like I was being eaten... I liked it."

"(Sigh) You really haven't changed at all. Just as reckless as you were when we were kids." Karen gently shook her head. Some things never do change.

"Hmph, no matter, I've seen lovely flowers in bloom because of it."

"Gina-neesan, you have to be more careful. You're a Sniper, for Heaven's sake. Keep your distance from the Aragami, use a scope if you must." The younger Dickinson couldn't help but take a reprimanding tone at her elder.

"(Huff) Scopes are unbecoming." Gina scowled in disbelief that Karen would even suggest that. "A scope is considered a cheat-handicap. I only need one eye to hit my target."

"Even so, you don't have to be so close to the Aragami. You can see your bloody flowers just fine from afar."

"Hmph, no. I love seeing the mesmerizing details each flower creates, up close with my own eye. It's the most beautiful sight you'll ever see."

"Ugh, just don't go recklessly dying on me. How will I ever be able to beat you if you're dead?"

"Oh, thank you for your concern. But I'm afraid I won't be able to die so soon. If I did then how would I ever be able to make my flowers?" A smirk started to creep on Gina's face.

"(Slight chuckle) Right..." Karen couldn't help but let out a small smile at Gina's response. As a child, she thought that Gina was invincible, like nothing could ever take her down. It would seem that the thought still remains alive in Karen's core.

"Oh, that reminds me. Have you talked to Shun yet?"

"..." The smile left Karen's face at the mention of him. "I don't want to talk to him."

"Karen." Gina sighed out in exasperation, rolling her eye.

"He's a jerk." Karen sighed as she fell back onto her seat on the couch in mental exhaustion and annoyance.

"He's your cousin."

"He's always been a jerk, ever since we were little."

"Take it from me. I've fought along side him for years now, he's different on the inside than on the outside."

"Somehow, I doubt that."

"Give him a chance. It's been awhile since you've last seen him." Gina said, tapping Karen's shoulder before walking passed her and the couch to go down the stairs onto the lower Entrance floor. "I want you to at least try to bond with him before you go on a mission together."

"Tst," Karen unconsciously clicked her teeth at the thought of fighting along that cocky son-of-an-Uncle. But she would respect her older cousin's wish, even is she wouldn't do it right away. after all, Gina didn't say she had to talk to him right now.

Perhaps she could do something else with the rest of her time that day. The Aragami were always roaming about; maybe there was an extra mission or two for her to do to keep up with her training...

*** Meanwhile in the Hanger ***

Yuu had walked into the Hanger with two cans of unopened 'First Love Juice' after a long day of hard work. Looking after the new recruits had gnawed on his anxieties. Such responsibilities, looking after the life of not one but three fresh blood out there in the ravaged wastelands. Not only did he have to train them like his old Leader- Lindow- use to, but they also were assigned to the City of Mercy. The same area where Lindow had gone MIA, or for that matter KIA.

If he was honest with himself, Yuu was completely terrified. Time had a cruel tendency of repeating himself. He didn't know if he had grown strong enough to defy it if it did repeat itself again.

But... the new recruits were okay. They had done better than he expected, Karen even more so. They handled themselves well against the Vajra, even he had started with only a Ogretail on his first mission out on the field. He would've loved to have given them an easier opponent to start with on their first mission. But with the sudden increase of Advanced-Breed Aragami, he could only give them the weakest Aragami running about at that set time. Even after their mission he had to go out again to face a Tezcatlipoca and a Chi-You in the Wailing Plains, and then again later a Borg Camlann and a Vajra in the Sunken Grid. But even with the stronger than usual beginning Aragami to face, they did good.

Annette and Frederico had raw talent, but it could be molded into something great. Annette had a hard time using her shield when she needed to, but that was nothing the Training Ground couldn't handle. Frederico was the faster learner, compared to Annette. For a period of time, during the mission, he shadowed Yuu and copied his movement. Just long enough until he got a feel for it, then he was handling the Vajra on his own. Again, his skill was unpolished, but still noticeable. Now Karen... Karen shined above the others. Her moves were calculated, her strikes flawless, she had the skills of a trained warrior with many seasons under her belt. Even in her presence, his anxiety for the others safety was calmed. She had a tranquil air around that was contagious, to him and the others as well. The girl could handle herself, that he was sure of. Although, he kinda hoped that she would talk more. To open up a little, since they were teammates.

Well, at least he had Ren opening up to him. One new recruit was good enough for now, the others would soon follow, Karen taking the tail-end of the wagon most likely.

The day was almost done, and his missions were all over. He decided to take a break with his new favorite recruit, Ren. As a leader he was not suppose to pick favorites, but he couldn't help it. Ren was the bomb in his book. Friendly, smart, helpful, caring, he even help save Yuu's life on the first day they met. Work hours were over, it was time to kick back and relax.

Yuu was planning to share a can of 'First Love Juice' with Ren and simply hang out. Get to know each other better while his team was still out. He didn't have to look far for Ren, as he only ever went to two places. Since his first choice, the Sick Bay, reaped no results he went to his second choice. And there he found Ren, in the Hanger, looking at Lindow's God Arc.

"Ah, good work today." Ren greeted Yuu as he turned once he heard the sound of the elevator door opening.

"We all worked hard today." Yuu grinned at Ren as he approached. Holding out the second can of 'First Love Juice' to Ren once he was in arms reach distance. "I think we've deserved a break. Here."

"Thank you very much." Ren gave him a smile in appreciating, taking the cold can from Yuu's hands before looking it over. "Oh! Is this that "First Love Juice' I've been hearing so much about?"

"Yup, give it a try. See if you like it." Yuu eyed Ren in anticipation as he waited to see whether Ren would like or reject the drink. He had placed his money on Ren liking the stuff, he was waiting to see if he would be proven wrong or not. Ren hesitated for a second after opening the can. Nervously placing the can on his lips and taking the first sip, his eyes widened as the taste touched his tongue.

"This is... it's quite... delicious!" He happily concluding before going for another chug. Yuu's grin couldn't help but widen into a big smile at the results.

"See! I knew you would like it! The Doc may seem a little eccentric at times, but he made some pretty good stuff. I don't care what the others say."

"..." Ren smile in agreement, closing his eyes as it reached his cheeks. But then the smile faded away as he looked back at Lindow's God Arc. "This is Lindow's God Arc isn't it?"

"?!" The kid was right, but how did he know that?

"Oh, I forgot to tell you... I've gone into battle with Lindow before."

"Hm, so you're only a new recruit to this Branch. Sorry I keep calling you a rookie then. (Chuckle)." Yuu said, rubbing the back of his head in slight embarrassment for the mishap. But the cheeky grin left his face as he saw the thoughtful, far off look on Ren's face as he turned back to Lindow's God Arc.

"Ah... that was cruel of Lindow... Leaving you behind... and going off on his own." Ren didn't even look at Yuu as he talked, he almost seemed lost in deep thought. Then he almost gave Yuu a heart attack when he reached up to try and grab the God Arc.

"Whoa, what are you doing, kid?!" Yuu barked in panic, instinctively grabbing for Ren's wrist to stop him from possibly getting Devoured by the God Arc's foreign Oracle Cells. He was already in the red for touching someone else's God Arc and possibly having his body reject the foreign God Arc and go into an Aragami Infection, he didn't need Ren to go through that as well. He had dropped his half-drank can in the process, but that wasn't important at them moment.

"!" But as soon as he made contact with Ren's wrist, he had undergone a Resonance. He hadn't had one since that with Alisa in the Sick Bay, so the whole experience caught him off guard. Time felt like it had stopped, the can had frozen in midair from its plummet to the floor.

He saw Lindow... he saw him before they left him at the City of Mercy's church and after they had unwillingly left, during his fight with the Aragami. He was badly hurt, and rescued... by Shio.

He was in bad condition, but he was still alive.

As the realization hit him, time had started to flow again. The sound of his can hitting the ground ringed through the Hanger as its remaining liquid spilled on the floor.

Ren just stared at Yuu in confusion as terrified shock coated his face. "Hm? What's the matter?"

"!" Yuu couldn't say anything, he just ran. He didn't even have time to think straight, or even contemplating thinking over what he had just seen from the Resonance, let alone question the logic of how Ren had come upon this information. All Yuu could think of was that he had to tell Dr. Sakaki and Tsubaki, right away. "Hoff!"

"!" Yuu had grunted out a sound as he bumped into something hard yet soft as he ran toward the elevator, without stopping once it opened. He had bumped into the new recruit, Karen, rather hardly as she was coming out the elevator herself. The impact wasn't enough to knock them off their feet, but enough to push them back and knock the breath out of them. Karen was not by the rude behavior. "[Watch where you're going]."

"Sorry, Karen!" Yuu hastily apologized, passing her to get into the elevator, without pause.

"[What's wrong with him]?" Karen asked aloud to herself, slightly huffed that he barely sparred a second to see if she was alright. He did seem sincere when he apologized so she held no grudge against his rude behavior. But life shouldn't be rushed like that, wherever he had to go could have waited a second for him to get there at a normal pace. But she had to let out a breath of air in annoyance as she noticed the can of 'First Love Juice' he left behind on the floor. "[Littering, such disgraceful behavior. He could have cleaned up after himself properly]."

The spilled drink on the floor annoyed her as if it was intentionally mocking her. She had nothing on her to clean it up, but the way she was raised would not allow her to leave the can where it was. Picking up the can, she would dispose of the trash properly while going to retrieve paper-towels to clean up the spill.

She leaned down to pick up the can, noticing that it still contained some of its continent. She would have to dispose of the rest in a sink before properly placing it in a Recycling bin.

As she was rising her bent back, she noticed another can of 'First Love Juice' resting on the railing by an Old-Type Long Blade God Arc resting on the Hanger, a Blood Surge X blade and Evader X shield.

The can was empty...

*** Author's Notes ***

neesan- the proper spelling of the Japanese word for older sister


	4. Chapter 4

Note:

"Text" = Normal speech

"[Text]" = Speech in Japanese (sorry, too lazy to use an online translator, and unable to afford a professional translator)

_Text_ = Thoughts

Enter the Other Half

The armored personnel carrier slowed to a gentle stop, kicking up a small cloud of dust as its engine quieted down to a gentle rumble, before choking out and stopping completely.

Everything was quiet inside; not a sound, not even of breathing from the lone occupant inside the cabin.

A small metal window slid open, flooding light into the darkened passenger area. A pair of dark brown eyes peered in, trying to see through the darkness. "What the... Oi, swordswoman! You still in there?" A gruff voice called, eyes narrowing in an attempt to accustom its sight to the darkness. "We're here, and for Pete's sake don't dim the damn thing, and -!" The voice abruptly stopped. "Put some clothes on, woman! You're gonna give me a heart attack!"

Nothing but the sound of shuffling cloth gave any indication that there was anyone inside. Shortly, light slowly entered the cabin area, showing a young woman wearing a pair of black pants with a v-cut slit on the hip area, held together by crisscrossing lines of cloth. Her feet were shod in what appeared to be black running shoes. She appeared to have just finished tidying her blonde hair inside a black beanie cap, accentuated with a wide red stripe that ran through its length.

The unnerving part was that she was topless, and a sniper top lay folded neatly beside a blue-and-silver blade. "I appreciate the concern about my decency. Please don't trouble yourself." Her low voice was heard replying as she dutifully turned her back to the still-watching eyes, bending slightly forward and both hands reaching to her back to clip on a strapless black bra. She turned her head sideways partly, the corner of her eyes glinting hard. "And please stop watching me like a Peeping-tom."

"Oh, right." She heard the window slide shut, its simple clip locking in place from the other side. Wordlessly, she picked up the long-sleeved shirt and slid it on, buttoning up only the second and third buttons.

Her right hand reached to the weapon laying on the long seat, held in place by simple leather straps. A small yank was all it took to free it from its bindings, then pushed the rear door open.

The vehicle did not move as she gently leaped off, her footwear crunching the light snow underfoot. The vehicle's driver stuck his head outside the window, yelling at her. "Oi, swordswoman! I'll be back after forty-five minutes, ya hear?"

A noncommittal nod was the only answer she gave as the APC's engine started, and drove off shortly afterwards.

"Little has changed," she mused to herself as she started walking towards the rendezvous point. "I wonder..."

.xxxxx.

The hard knock of a bamboo sword brought sense back into the blonde girl. "[Ouch! Dad!]"

The brown-haired man in front of her smirked, shouldering the three-foot long weapon. "[Pay more attention, daughter. I am not teaching you your cousins' reckless methods, I want you to learn to face your targets head on, like a true swordsman should.]" He shifted his feet and held the bamboo sword in both hands. "[Now, hold your blade with both hands. Your grip must be firm yet relaxed. Not like what you're doing now,]" he added with a chuckle.

"[Hmmph!]" The blonde girl gripped her hands so tight, her arms began shaking.

"[Karen, Karen, you have the idea but you're not following it.]" The elder man let go of his bamboo weapon and positioned himself behind the young girl, gently prying her grip loose.

He then pulled out a sheet of paper from his sleeve and rolled it up. "[Let's try it this way. Think of this roll of paper as your sword's nakago(1). However, it has been very badly damaged, so you can only do one last attack with it.]" He smiled as his daughter let her imagination take over, eyes widening. "[Yes, and the evil warlord is on his last legs too... Both of you have damaged swords, and you both know that each of you can do only one attack more. It's all or nothing.]" He then slid his bamboo sword, grip-first, into the paper tube, then held the paper grip to the young girl. "[You know and believe with all your heart that your Empty Sky Sword style will emerge the victor... But to do that, you will need to fall back to your basic training. The first of them all, grip your sword firmly yet keep your hand relaxed.]"

As the girl's hand closed on the rolled-up paper, her father turned serious. "[Your sword's handle is liable to break if you grip it too tightly. However, make it too loose, and your blade will fly from your hand. What do you do?]"

The little girl's brows drew together. _[Grip yet not let it slip? How do I...?]_

Her face brightened when she realized the solution. The girl let her hand wrap on the paper, keeping only enough pressure to not let the bamboo sword slip through the paper, yet making sure her hands don't squeeze tightly to avoid crumpling the paper.

The girl looked up, seeing a gentle smile beaming down at her. "[Good, Karen. Now, let us continue.]"

.xxxxx.

The blonde woman smiled slightly at the memory as her last target, a Vajratail, screamed its last while her dark blue Glacier Katana X slashed through its side. [_As usual, Father's training served me well. If only I could get my asshole 'cousin' to cooperate with me_], she thought to herself as the smile disappeared from her face, replaced by a scowl. [_sadly, that cheeky jerk doesn't care for anyone except himself. No wonder Mother and Father don't think highly of him. It's probably better this way, at least I won't have to worry about anyone suddenly leaving me open to attacks._]

She heard a faint growl behind her. Turning, her eyes locked with the Vajratail's.

For several seconds, they stared at each other, the only sound being the low rumbling from the Vajratail's throat. She turned to face the Aragami, both hands gripping the blade's handle.

"[Very well. I shall end your misery.]" She raised it up slowly, high above her head, the Aragami following the blade as if mesmerized. "[Empty Sky Sword Style... Judgment: Requiem]."

.xxxxx.

She was silent once more in the APC, only barely waving to the driver as she left the vehicle and entered the Den.

Going through the God Arc Storage Area, the young woman handed her weapon to the goggled mechanic. "Welcome back, Karen! Oh, looks like you didn't use your gun much this time."

"No, Licca-dono. I needed the sword practice." She turned to leave, but stopped partway. "I have a favor to ask, Licca-dono."

"What is it?" Licca had already placed the dark blue blade in its locking holster, and it was now being lowered out of sight.

Karen took a slow breath, and slowly released it. "Can you... Forge me a tantou(2) or an uchigatana(3), without Oracle Cell linings?"

"Why?"

"For... A friend." Karen's voice hitched slightly.

Both were silent for a short while. "You don't have to tell me anything else Karen. I'll need a few things to get that done." Licca placed her hand on the taller woman's shoulder in a friendly gesture.

"Thank you, Licca-dono."

.xxxxx.

The elevator doors opened with a soft hiss. "You're finally here," Tsubaki's voice broke through Karen's train of thought. "We have a new God Eater in the Den, and she's a New Type like you."

"She?" Karen asked in a monotone voice.

"Yes. She's been through her medical checkup and she will be here shortly. And speaking of her, here she comes."

The elevator doors opened again, Karen doing a 180-degree turn and bowing deeply. "[I am honored to meet you. I am Ogawa Karen.]"

"Kon'nichiwa to you too, Karen!"

"?!" Karen had to rise up and raise an eyebrow at the new comers energetic greeting.

Like her, this new girl was a native to these lands, however... the girl's appearance was a little more eccentric than Karen. While Karen held her head tall with noble's integrity, the way this girl carried herself seemed to indicate one of a lower birth. Even so, her features were a little strange for a native of the Far East Branch. Although her hair was long and silky like most born in this region it had a blue hue to it that one could notice even outside of the sunlight. Her face lacked the normal serious traditional look, as her big eyes revealed their baby purples. Perhaps that was a mutation in her gene pool, but Karen had yet to see someone else with the same mutation through her years at this Branch. Her skin had a slight touch of the sun, but unlike Karen it didn't leave her skin slightly tanned but instead a little pink.

However exotic she had turned out to be, she seemed to have a more... conservative style of dressing. Sporting nothing but a blue Medic Coat to tease the viewer with a shape but revealed nothing, and a blue Casual Bottom with a short mini skirt that still covered it all with her black tights. She was smiling at Karen as she stood in a hero pose with her hands on her hips, which then turned to a toothy grin.

"The name's Shōkan. Shōkan Maebure for long." The girl gave Karen a two finger salute. "Hey are you the new member in my Unit as well?"

"?"

"She'll be joining your team as of today." Tsubaki explained to Karen as she saw the question raising with Karen's eyebrow. "Although she hasn't experience actual combat yet, her scores in the training room were phenomenal. I trust you two will look after each other, since you're both new-bloods here. Yuu and Alisa will both be looking after you both as well as your seniors."

"Hai, Tsubaki-sama." Karen nodded her head down in a bow in compliance to Tsubaki, soon after eying the girl that just became the new addition onto her team. Seemed like this Den was starting to fill with new members and New-Types.

"Since you're here, Karen, you can show her around. Let her get to know the Den and its members. Help her get along with her teammates." Tsubaki instructed. "You're her senior now, even though it's only by a couple of days. She's going to look up to you. Guide her through the ways of the God Eaters, take her on a mission with you if you must. Just not too much of a challenging mission, we don't want to over expose her on her first day."

"Hai, Okusama."

"Hmph, Good. That will be all." Tsubaki dismissed them as she walked off to the lower floor with her clipboard to go about another task, muttering something under her breath about 'not being _that _old'. With her gone, that left Karen and Shōkan alone together.

"Sooo," Shōkan said, elongating her word, drawing Karen's attention back to her. "You've been here longer than me, how far have you gotten with your God Arc?"

"As far as I need it to be."

"So you've been upgrading it, or perhaps you altered it to something more like you?"

"I've made it to fit my purpose."

"Ugh, you're no fun. It's like trying to see through a brick wall with you." Shōkan pouted before invading Karen's personal space by getting up and close to her face. "They say you can tell a person's character by their preference and style."

"..." Karen simply stared into Shōkan's purple eyes, remaining unmoved.

"Ugh," Shōkan sighed out as she backed away from Karen. "You've got a stone strong will there, almost like a Samurai."

Silence reigned between them for almost a minute, only to be broken by Shōkan as if the period of silence never happened.

"So then, Karen, how about you help me set up my God Arc."

"Very well, I will help with your God Arc once we get to the God Arc Hanger when I show you around."

"Whaaa, that will take like-forever."

"Have patience, Shōkan-dono. Time will not move faster for those who are impatient."

"Oh, how polite and well mannered you are." Shōkan cooed at her. "But I am no dono, nor am I of noble birthing. If you must, call me Shōkan-chan. We are peers now, are we not?"

"Very well... Shōkan-san."

"(Sigh) Well, it's a start." Shōkan sighed out in exasperation. Ignoring Karen's personal space again, she came into Karen's space bubble and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"..." Karen stared out the offending hand with bemusement. She had no fondness of being touched by others, especially strangers, but at the same time she saw no threat in the gesture from Shōkan. The girl was calm and disarmed, Karen could sense no evil intent from her. The girl had no sense of personal space, but she seemed harmless. It was just... in her nature; that much Karen could tell.

"So how about that tour you were talking about." Shōkan suggested, taking off her hand from Karen's shoulder.

"Mottomo na." Karen complied as she lead Shokan off the Entrance Floor and into the Residence Section Elevator.

"..." Tsubaki watched quietly as the girls walked off into the elevator from her spot at the lower benches. There was something off about those two; Karen was good at hiding it and Shōkan just showed if off for all to see. She had seen the odd girl's suspicious behavior so far...

.xxxxx.

It was a routine Amplitude Test, the new recruit was to stick her hand into the machine and tested whether she was a match or not. It was a simple task that she had seen the process of countless times.

But unlike all the other times, when the machine came down upon her hand when she gripped the God Arc she did not scream or cry out. Her eyebrow twitched for a second and her grin turned into gritted teeth, but her face remained strong, unlike most who had passed the Amplitude Test. By the time she was done, she was holding her standardized God Arc in one hand.

"This God Arc... is too small..." Was all the recruit had to say, she wasn't tired and she wasn't out of breath from the process. She was calm and unwavering in her voice.

Tsubaki found her first words after her test odd, most would react with 'glad that's over' or 'what the hell is this thing' as they looked upon their God Arcs for the first time.

"Congratulations, Shōkan Maebure, you are now official a New-Type Gods Eater of the Far East Branch." Tsubaki said down to her from the speakers in the observatory room. "Report to Dr. Sakaki in three hundred hours for your medical check-up. I will show you to your new room and we can begin your training later."

"Sounds fun, I can't wait..." Shōkan replied back to her, never taking her eyes off of her God Arc.

*** Some time later ***

Dr. Sakaki had reported her vitals as passingly normal for a New-Type, but with still quite ecstatic about the results from her data. But she refused to fall asleep through the whole process, eying him with unnerving eyes. Hearing that she was passing was good enough for Tsubaki as she pushed Shōkan to keep moving along as Dr. Sakaki rambled on.

"He'll ramble on forever if we let him." Tsubaki explained as they walked off into the elevator. "The day is burning, let's not waste anymore time."

"Alright."

"Hmm..." Tsubaki looked down at the girl, looking over her features. "Your hair is too long, it'll get in the way on the fields. You'll either have to tie it back or cut it off."

"What?! Come on, I worked hard for this hair!" Shōkan pouted out.

"..." Her whining had earned the slanted eyes of Tsubaki, that commandingly said 'no buts'. But Shōkan didn't seem to be intimated by her stare and simply sighed out.

"(Sigh) Fine, I'll tie it back into a ponytail." Shōkan didn't like tying her hair into a ponytail, that style belong to someone very close to her, it felt like she was stealing it.

Tsubaki nodded in approval at Shōkan's answer, exiting the elevator with her as they had reached their floor. She had taken Shōkan to her assigned room on the Rookie's Floor, where she would be rooming right beside her fellow new recruit New-Type team member. The room had the standardized furnishing, but it was still more than what Shōkan appeared to be use to as she stared at the room in awe.

"Get settled in if you want, or look around the Den at your leisure. Just be sure to report to the Training Grounds in two hundred hours." Tsubaki explained to her, bringing Shōkan back to their world. Shōkan nodded at Tsubaki's instructions and walked into the room, carrying a big hiking bag on her back. "We can send other free-hand God Eaters to help carry in the rest of your luggage."

"Huh? Oh, no need. This is all I brought with me."

"?" Such an odd thing for a girl. "You brought so little?"

"It was all I could carry. And it was all I need." Shōkan answered, looking at Tsubaki before turning back to look at the room. "It would be far too greedy to take more with me."

"?"

"..."

"Very well, do what you will with the time warranted to you." Tsubaki said, shaking off the odd pause from Shōkan's words. "I will see you in two hours."

"Peace." Shōkan waved back at her without turning around.

*** Hours Later ***

Shōkan had showed up in time, but with things she didn't expect. After Shōkan was done with whatever she redid in her room, she had made her way back to the Entrance Floor. Where Tsubaki saw her haggle some trading items with the Den's Merchant. She had somehow gotten a hold of some really good Aragami parts and she was selling them to the Merchant for a decent price.

Although Tsubaki could see that Shōkan had an amazing poker face, she could tell that the girl had no idea what the value of fc (Fenrir Credits) currency was. She was trusting that the Merchant would give her a fair price, while at the same time not giving him a reason to cheat her once he found out she had no idea what her items were worth if he wasn't being fair. The kid was street smart, Tsubaki would give her that, but where had she been that she didn't know how much a fc was worth?

She was even good about not giving out too much information. When the Merchant had asked her how she had gotten a hold of her items, she had simply responded 'That's not important. Selling the product is. You keep your trade secret and I'll keep mine. Capisce?'

The girl had sold enough to buy her new outfit and multiples of it to last her for weeks, along with some Recovery Items and traps she would most likely need out on the field. Even Licca had reported with surprise when she had showed up in the Hanger to retrieve her God Arc and decided to look through one of the Floor's Terminal to see what she could craft her God Arc into her upgrade to. She had searched through the Terminal's options for a good ten minutes before she found what she was looking for. A grin rose on her face as she had spotted an option that had peaked her interest.

In a shock to Licca, Shōkan had appeared to have pulled out the items that she needed from her bag in order to change around her God Arc. Her Type50 Auto-Gun had turned into a Tigris Gun, which in turn upgraded into a Tigris Gun N II, to a Queen Tigris Gun, all the way to Queen Tigris Gun II. She would have gone further but lacked the items needed from a Prithivi Mata. Her Common Shield had changed into a Saint Germain, which it turn was altered all the way into a Trismegistos R. But she tsk in irritation when she realized she didn't have the items she needed to change her Blade into anything else and had to settle with just upgrading it into a Chill Blade EX. She would have changed it into a Forbidden Iceblade if she had an Empress Wreath and Aragami Crystals. But she sighed it off, most likely she could look for the items later.

Even so she was somehow able, to still have enough money- and miraculously have the items needed for it- to make and equip a Surt Control Unit with a Freeze/Divine Kit and Stun Immunity Upgrades. How she got a hold of those strong Aragami parts, Licca would never know. Either she had made some shady trades before she had gotten to the Den, or she was hiding something from them; either way she would tell them nothing. And it was doing the Den no harm, so Tsubaki let her keep her secrets.

Tsubaki could see no harm in Shōkan, judging from her back records. Her records had checked out, and her slate was clean. But that didn't change the fact that the girl was strange, even as she entered the Training Grounds and updated her files to give herself a codename for the field. Not only was her name weird for a young lady but her codename was as well, she codenamed herself 'Redemption'. Even Shōkan's skill during the training course was good, that raw talent good. If anything, the girl was mostly street fighting the Aragami. Where exactly did this girl come from?

.xxxxx.

Karen had just given Shōkan a tour of the Den, ending the whole walk-through at the God Arc Hangers.

"That should be everything," Karen concluded in a matter-fact tone. "The team is out at the moment, so you'll have to meet up with them later."

"Fine, I like the occasional surprise every now and then." Shōkan replied as she looked around the Hanger. "Sooo, which one of these bad puppies is yours?"

"The blue blade," Karen simply answered as she pointed her finger at her Glacier Katana II. Shōkan couldn't help but whistle at it.

"Whoa, nice katana. But I think it could become better." Shōkan commented before turning to face Karen with a suggestive grin. "What do you say we go out on the field to look for our parts?"

"I would not recommend such rash action. Prithivi Mata's are not Aragami to be taken lightly. I cannot guarantee we will be enough to kill it, let alone if we'll find one."

"Pfft, if-smill, less worrying about the what ifs of the future and more focusing on the now." Shōkan just waved off, wrapping an arm around Karen's shoulders as she pulled her closer to her. "Let's just go, we'll worry about the details once we're out there. If anything it'll most likely be in a cold area so that narrows down our field of search."

"..."

"Think about it Karen. You need some Empress Fangs and I need an Empress Wreath. Why not help each other?"

"Hm..."

"If not that, it'll at least give us time to get to know each other. I want to see what the fellow teammate I'm trusting my life with can do."

Karen didn' know if it was simply an innocent statement or a challenge. Either way, it awoke the warrior's spirit in her. "Heh, very well. It should be a good field training experience for you anyway."

"Yay! That's the spirit, let's go show those Aragami what we're made of!"

"Hnh, It'll be a harder fight, dealing with them considering both our God Arc's element type."

"Heh, we'll need the handicap if we plan to give the Aragami a fair chance." Shōkan gloated before pulling out her God Arc from the Hanger. "Now let's go get ourselves some Prithivi Mata heads. I'm looking forward to finally changing out of this light weight blade."

*** Authors Notes ***

(1) nakago = grip for nihontou blades  
(2) tantou = knife/dagger. More on Wikipedia.  
(3) uchigatana = short blade. Check out the wikipedia entry for details.

... actually 'Tanto' is the meaning for short blade, but they usually are knife/dagger size. Be careful about Wikipedia, they're not always correct. Look it up in a book or ask a Sensei of traditional Kendo for the answer.

okusama= madame

Mottomo na= right (reasonable)


	5. Chapter 5

New First Unit Recruit: Shōkan Maebure

Codename: Redemption

Hairstyle: 18; Color: 15

Face: 3; Skin: 7

Voice: 20

Top: Blue Medic Coat; Bottom: Blue Casual Bottom

God Arc: Queen Tigris Gun II; Forbidden Iceblade; Trismegistos R

Control Unit: Surt

Upgrades: Freeze/Divine Kit; Stun Immunity

The Start of a New Beginning

"Ugh, it's cold as hell out here." Shōkan groaned out, rubbing her arms for warmth. "My neck feels like a freak'n popsicle without my hair covering it."

"Hmph, you'll live." Both of their breaths came out like frost dragons. Shōkan's wild and chaotic due to the effecting weather, Karen's calm and collect.

"How the hell aren't you freezing out here? What with that revealing coat you're wearing."

Without turning, Karen replied in a level tome. "It's all a matter of the will of the mind. If I don't want to feel cold then I won't, it's as simple as that."

"My, look at you, being all philosophical." Shōkan huffed out with a grin. "I wouldn't be surprised if you burst out in a haiku while you're at it."

ROAARRR!

"!" They both turned toward the direction the great cry came from. "Hmph, it's coming."

"Look's like our quarry is impatient, talk about rude." Shōkan let out a light chuckle before calming her voice until it was nothing but a breath. "Let's go."

"Let's begin."

They both ran off toward the direction of the Aragami, light flurries accompanying them every now and then as they dash through the temple grounds. The Prithivi Mata was practically waiting for them by the Gong Tower.

"Leave this to me!" Shōkan said with glee as she readied her long blade.

"I'll hold it off." Karen insisted, getting in front of Shōkan to block her from the Prithivi Mata. "Don't even fight."

"I won't let you monopolize it!" Shōkan insisted, jumping over Karen to get her fun in on the Prithivi Mata.

Shōkan had a madman's grin on her face as she leaped at the Prithivi Mata, who was doing the same at her. They had met halfway in the air, but the Prithivi Mata had won the exchange. Shōkan had fallen to the ground as the Prithivi Mata gracefully landed on its feet by the small shrine.

"Foolish choice," Karen huffed out, firing at the Prithivi Mata while Shōkan got back on her feet. She had an idea that this mission would be too much for a fresh-out-of-training recruit, she just didn't believe that Shōkan would be _this_ much of a handful.

The Prithivi Mata had pushed Karen to the stairs as she rolled out of the way of the leaping Aragami.

"Take it." Karen nonchalantly said to the Aragami as she fired her Oracle bullets straight at its face from beside it.

"I'll tear it up!" Shōkan growled, dashing in front of the Aragami, side slicing it, pushing it back.

They had taken the fight all the way down the stairs, circling the Prithivi Mata like a pact of wolves in the hunt. Soon the Prithivi Mata tired out and made a run for it back up the stairs. Not losing its trail, the girls had followed it back to the small shrine where it was eating some salvaging material. Without making a sound, even from their boots crushing down the soft blanket of snow, they had snuck behind the Aragami and closed in for a Devouring bite.

"Devour."

"Devour it!" While the Prithivi Mata was jumping away from them, they both turned to each other and fired Team-bullets. "Don't mess this up!"

"Are you sure." Karen huffed back at Shōkan in sarcasm as she was experiencing the boosted Burst, firing her Team-bullets at Shoukan. The new recruit new about Team-bullets and the bases of New-Type God Eaters, perhaps she wouldn't be too troublesome in the future.

"I'll show you what I'm made of!" Shōkan said in excitement as the power flowed through her body.

.xxxxx.

"[Today, I shall introduce you to your worst enemy.]"

Karen didn't understand. She was now 7, and in the small patch of forest within the Ogawa lands. "[I... Don't see anyone, Father.]"

"[Of course not,]" he chuckled. "[The enemy I shall introduce you to is someone you know well.]"

"[Eh?]" Karen took a half-step back, blurting out the first name in her mind. "[Gina-neesan?]"

"[What? Of course not, silly girl.]" Her father poked her forehead gently. "[I was referring to _you_, daughter.]"

"[Me?!]"

"[Yes. Over here are young trees, and they are as old as you are. I want you to hug one and uproot it.]"

Karen couldn't believe her ears. Her father was asking her to uproot a young tree by _hugging _it?

She must have looked utterly confused, making her father sigh. "[Come here, daughter. I'll show you how to do it.]"

Karen watched in fascination as her father rolled up his long sleeves, revealing a pair of heavily muscled arms. He encircled one if the older trees, and walked up to it. "[You can do whatever suits you, but this is how it works best for me.]" He dusted his hands, slightly bent his knees, then lunged at the tree while his arms snaked around it, in one smooth motion. Karen could easily see the muscles in her father's arms start to bulge.

She then heard him softly count to three, then the next events surprised Karen. With a bellow, her father braced his legs and started to pull the tree up and towards him. She could see his arm muscles suddenly explode in effort, and the tree actually rose several inches from the ground.

It took her father four more attempts before he fully uprooted the tree. By that time, there was a depression on the ground, about two or three inches deep, that showed where her father stood. Karen didn't know her father could do that, and she said as much. "[... I... I can't believe it...]"

"[You have seen it. And you can do it too.]"

As much as she didn't want to, the disbelieving look shot up Karen's face again. "{Ehh?! There's no way I can do something like THAT, Father!]"

"[Try it first before you say you can't.]" Karen's father set down the uprooted tree, and sat on it. "[Human will power is a very potent, yet underplayed, undervalued and underappreciated tool. What your mind and heart can conceive, your body will be able to achieve. At the same time, doubt and fear are your worst enemies.]"

Her father's next words were something that kept in mind. "[Remember this, daughter; you are an Ogawa. All rivers, great and little, feed into the ocean.]"

"[What... What does that mean, Father?]"

She remembered the weight of his palm as it gently descended on her head. "[It means whatever you mean it will. Now, get started, duagther. I'm not expecting you to pull one tree out immediately, just do what you can.]"

.xxxxx.

The Prithivi Mata tried to fire its ice spears at them. Karen had anticipated this and dashed to the side, braced her legs and triggered Impulse Edge by firing her Gun-mode at the Prithivi Mata's side while still in Blade-mode, without staggering or backing up with recoil. Shōkan had dashed into the Aragami's face, boldly dodging its attack in an offense way that was tempting the Aragami to take a bite. A strong slash to the face and its head armor came clean off.

"It's cracked."

"Still not enough." Shōkan said with greed. She didn't just want the Aragami's armor, she wanted its life.

Angered, the Prithivi Mata tried to hit them with a blizzard attack. Both Shōkan and Karen got their shields up.

"Heh ha, boy, this Frost Bitch is putting up quite a fight." Shōkan chuckled as they both were hiding behind their shields.

"This Ice Queen is cold... but I have fought colder things." Karen had tightened her grip on her God Arc as a memory began to play in her mind. "Things that put Death to shame."

"Ooh, sounds charming." Shōkan cooed at the sound of a stronger opponent. Taking advantage of their minor distraction, the Prithivi Mata made a run for it toward the main temple. "Damn it, quit running, you pussy!"

"After it." Karen ordered, taking the lead in the pursuit as the faster runner of the ladies. Not wasting any time, she slashed downward at the Prithivi Mata before it could even make it into the temple. "It's almost finished."

Karen was right, the Prithivi Mata was on its last paws, its attacks had become sloppy with exhaustion. Realizing that this was a losing battle, the Prithivi Mata tried to make a run for it.

"Aw hell no. No more running!" Shōkan barked at the Aragami as she threw down something that stunned the Prithivi Mata with a blinding light. "Now!"

"A Stun Grenade?! That is a dishonorable form in a fight, and an unfair advantage!"

"This is a war against the Aragami, Noble Warrior! You use whatever dirty trick you can out here to win. Honor will just get you killed."

"Hmph, such savage logic."

"Heh, then call me a beast, because my way has kept me alive so far to be able to live this long." Shōkan grunted, taking advantage of the Prithivi Mata's stunned state.

"Honor has unerringly guided my blade so far," Karen stated, getting into stance as Judgment: Requiem while the Prithivi Mata recovered from being stunned. She waited until the Aragami was ready to fight before dashing at the Prithivi Mata in a thrust strike, slicing deeply through the Prithivi Mata's side and stopping right in front of Shōkan. The wind Karen had created from her attack had blown both of their hair with its breeze as the Prithivi Mata fell to the ground, tainting the white snow with the remains of its life blood. "And has destroyed all obstacles in my path."

"Hmph, how eloquent of you, Samurai."

"Tch, someone with a lack of training will never understand."

"Whatever, let's just extract the core." Shōkan huffed in exhaustion, already bored of the conversation. Brushing passed Karen, she walked over to the Prithivi Mata's corpse and took a Devouring bite at its core, happy at what she had pulled out. "All right, this is just what I need! What are you standing around there for? Come eat with me, Karen."

"Tst," Karen held back the vein of frustration from her brow at Shōkan's use of familiarity with her name without honorifics. But still, she would not waste such a feast due to her pride. Walking over to Shōkan, she took a Devouring bite into the Aragami's core. The reward was worth the fight, now she could upgrade her God Arc to the fullest. "It's over."

"Ahh, I feel better." Shōkan sighed out as they made their way down the stairs, toward the Starting Point.

"I'm bored," Karen admitted allowed, mostly to herself. As they were passing the small shrine, to the lower stairs, Karen had stopped in her tracks.

"Hmph, I'll go after it forever!" Shōkan huffed out in defiance of Karen's boredom. Noticing Karen's lack of response, she turned around to see that Karen had stopped moving to stand in front of the small shrine. Clapping her hands into a prayer sign, Karen bowed to the shrine in a respectful 45 degree bow. "Hm? I didn't know you were the religious type."

The katana wielder straightened up, addressing Shōkan without looking. "Have you... Do you believe in a God, Maebure-san?"

"If there is a God, he wants us to stand on our own feet."

"..."

"What are you praying for?"

Karen bowed again, speaking reverently. "I pray for strength, to fight the enemies that take from me in gluttonous hunger. But for the most part, I'm paying my respect to the one's I have lost."

"Really, now?"

"..." Karen began to ignore Shōkan as her eyes closed, focusing on the task at hand. Relaxing into a calm silence; her eyes remained slightly open, as the way she was taught, to still have an awareness of the surroundings. But her eyes shot open as she felt a presence stand beside her. "?!"

Shōkan had joined her, getting into a respectful prayer stance as well.

"I guess I could pay my respects to my lost ones as well."

"..."

Maybe this girl wasn't so bad after all.

.xxx. Author's Notes .xxx.

Remember in chapter 4, Shōkan was still using a Chill Blade EX, and she mentioned she wanted to 'change out of her light weight blade'.


	6. Chapter 6

Meeting the Team

"Yes, Finally! Ooh baby you look so good." Shōkan cooed to her God Arc in excitement, cuddling to her newly altered Forbidden Iceblade. She wiggled around a bit in her antics as she pressed her cheek onto the Buster Blade.

The girls had just gotten back from their mission out in the Tranquil Temple, and Shōkan had rushed to the Terminal in the Hanger to change her God Arc. In contrast to Shōkan's haste, Karen kept her calm pace. With the final materials she had just acquired from the Prithivi Mata, Karen upgraded her God Arc to the highest level.

"If you're finished," Karen sighed out, slightly shaking her head at Shōkan's antics. She rested her God Arc on its assigned hanger slot before turning to Shōkan. "I think it's time that we part ways."

"Wha? So soon? But the day is still here."

"It's already night." Karen corrected. "And I do not wish to miss dinner at the Mesh Hall."

"But you haven't even introduced me to the team yet."

"I've only met one of our Unit members."

"You mean even you don't know who they are?"

"Karen just recently joined the team." Another voice answered in Karen's stead. "She hasn't had time to meet everyone since they've been out."

"?!" Shōkan turned in surprise that she had let someone sneak up on her. She almost acted on instinct until she realized where she was.

"Kannagi-sama," Karen slightly bowed to him in greeting. Shōkan raised an eyebrow at Karen's politeness towards this stranger, it was safe to assume that he was someone important.

"(Chuckle) Karen, how many times must I tell you? Call me Yuu."

"Very well, Yuu-dono."

"Heh, well, I guess we have to start somewhere." Yuu chuckled with a cheeky grin, rubbing the back of his head with his hand. That's when he noticed Shōkan there, eying him with a quirked eyebrow. "You must be the new rookie Tsubaki mentioned. Nice to meet you, I'm sorry I couldn't meet you sooner. I had a prior mission to attend to. By the way, I'm Yuu Kannagi, your Unit Leader."

"..." Shōkan eyed his out stretched hand then looked him over, her purple eyes seeming to bore into his very being before taking his outstretched hand with a grin, and shook it. "Ahh no worries, man. I rather liked hanging out with Samurai Karen. The name's Shōkan by the way, nice to meet you."

"Heh, you've got spunk. Let's hope you still have it by the end of the week." Yuu chuckled as he got out of her hand's strong grip. "Anyway, are you girls hungry? I was honestly going to skip dinner to go out and taken of a sudden mission. But since I bumped into you two, I was thinking I could accompany you to the Mesh Hall to show you the rest of the team. They just got back from a long mission themselves."

"I was going to appease my appetite anyway. Are you coming, Shōkan-san?"

"Hm, well, I was feeling a little peckish."

"Then it's settled! Come on ladies," Yuu cheered, placing an arm around each of the girls' shoulders to lead the way. "Let's go meet your new team."

Shōkan thought nothing of his arm on her shoulder, Karen for the most part was the same way. They felt no hidden agenda in his actions, the young man was an open book and was friendly enough. Both girls were good about gauging a person's character- one from training the other from street experience- so they trusted their instincts.

Yuu had lead them two floors up on the elevator to the Mesh Hall. The place was loud and lively as God Eaters ate among their teammates and talked about their day. Some turned toward them as the three entered the Mesh Hall, eying the new pair of faces. But most turned to wave at Yuu; apparently he was popular and well liked among the Den.

He had lead the girls to a table occupied by four God Eaters, two guys and two girls. The girls were pretty and well shaped, the older female with short, onyx hair appearing more shapely than her younger platinum haired companion. The guys, on the other hand, were a complete contrast of each other. One was clad in brightly colored in orange and yellow clothes, seemingly full of energy. The other wore a darker tone of blue and tan as he hid his face under a hood in mystery.

"Hey guys, how did the mission go?"

They all turned to Yuu as they heard him approaching, glad to see him. The platinum haired female was the most happy to see him as she turned her head toward him with a big smile. But that smile faded as she noticed his arms around the two girls' shoulders, an angry blush flushed to her cheeks.

"Yuu, who are they?" She asked him accusingly as if he was some kind of deviant ladies man.

"Jealousy is unbecoming of you, Ojousan." Karen sighed out, already detecting the feelings this female had for her leader.

"W-what?! I'm not jealous!" Alisa flustered. "And what did you just call me?!"

"A young lady." Shōkan answered. "Look it up."

"Oh..."

"Whoa, nice game, Yuu. Not one, but two." The brightly colored male praised with a thumps up.

"Knock it off, Kota." Yuu sighed out, rolling his eyes at his teammate's antics. "Everyone, these are the new recruits joining our Unit. Both highly praised New-Type God Eaters, and Tsubaki herself is just short of singing her praises."

"More of them? They've been flooding this Branch like rats." The hooded male huffed, before catching his words as he looked at the girls. "Sorry."

"No worries." "Mondainai." Shōkan waved off his insult, while Karen sighed it off.

"Hey, girls are always welcomed on our team." Kota said with a slight flirtation, causing the girls at the table to roll their eyes.

"Really now, Kota. I'm amazed that you're still at it." The platinum haired female groaned, along with the others. But they didn't get the reaction they expected from the new girls at Kota's words.

"I appreciate your enthusiastic acceptance of the female gender on the battlefield, sir." Karen gave him a peer bow, while Shōkan gave him a grin and a thumbs up.

"Nice to know we have such charming character on our team, kudos to anti-sexism."

"Uh..."

"Why don't you girls have a seat and introduce yourselves before you get your meals." Yuu suggested as he gently pushed them to sit across the older female and two males with him and the platinum haired female. He sat between the two girls and his platinum haired companion. "Why don't we go around and tell a little about ourselves."

"Ugh, must we go through the formalities, Yuu?" The hooded male groaned out.

"Be nice, Soma. They're new to the Den so let's try to be good Sempais and be friends."

"Tch, Soft."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. We'll go counterclockwise and start with you, Alisa, since they've already met me." Yuu instructed, turning his he'd to the side to look at her. Alisa blushed at the sudden attention drawn toward her, especially his.

"Oh, uh... I-I'm Alisa Amiella. I'm a New-Type, just like you, from the Russia Branch. I specialize in battle tactics with the side of medical experience, and I have a love for fashion." She turned red and squeaked at the last part. "T-that's it for me. I-I look forward to working with you in the future."

"See, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Yuu smiled at Alisa, patting her back in praise. Then he turned to look on the side of the table to wait for the next person to go.

"(Chuckle) My name is Sakuya Tachibana. Nice to meet you two." The older female smiled at the girls. "I'm an Old Type Sniper and Medic Gods Eater. I enjoy a nice cup of tea, meditation time, and my door is always open if you ever need an ear."

"Yo! I'm Kota Fujiki. I'm an Assault Rifle Type Gods Eater. I love spending my time with my Mom and Nozomi on my days off, and watching Burgurally once my missions are done. All in all, I'm pretty much an easy guy to get along with, so don't try too hard to be something you're not. So, uh, yeah... I'm looking forward to seeing how awesome you guys are."

"..." The last one remained silent with his arms crossed.

"Soma." Yuu groaned out, almost instructively.

"The name's Soma." The blue hooded male said with rolling eyes. "That's all you need to remember."

"Jeez, Soma. You could tell them a little about yourself."

"They don't need to know anymore."

"He's right; I don't need to hear more, cause I already got all I need to figure you out." Shōkan said with a cocky smirk, crossing her arms over her chests.

"?" The others turned to her in slight intrigue, waiting for her to further decipher her claim.

"Oh, and what've you learns so far?" Soma mocked with a confident grin, calling her bluff; the new girl had nothing.

"Your hood is up, meaning you're a loner type. But your coat is open, meaning you don't completely close yourself off from others."

"!" Soma's eyes widened at her analysis before he calmed himself. It was just a lucky fluke, anybody could've guessed that. He had calmed himself back into a poker face, only to have the other rookie take a crack at him.

"Your finger tips are slightly calloused, most likely from holding a blade for so long." Karen concluded. "Meaning you're an Older-Type Blade Gods Eater."

"You're also more muscular than the other guys on the team, meaning you most likely built up from carrying a heavier God Arc." Shōkan added in. "Meaning you're a Buster Blade User."

Karen and Shōkan met each others eyes for a second before tag teaming up on Soma again.

Karen went off first, forestalling Soma's rising interruption. "You have a somewhat cold indifference, most likely to hide your shy nature."

Shōkan immediately followed up. "You try to hide your face from others, yet you keep your hair well combed and your body smelling fresh, thank God, meaning you like your appearance. So you cover yourself to hide something else from the world."

"There's slight grease stains on your gloves, nearly impossible to get out. Grease stains that have a fading hint of gun powder to them, mostly staining during the process of cleaning firearms. No matter how subtle the scent is, I would be able to smell it a mile away due to my years working with guns. Although you are a Buster Blade User, you dabble with guns in your free time." Karen continued on, not letting up.

Shōkan kept the pressure, adding more to the list. "Though the smell of soap on you is still present, it's drowned out by the smell of coffee beans. You must really have a liking for coffee if the smell still stays on you past morning. And from the smell of things you're a Hazelnut fan."

"Most people who dabble with guns in their free time usually dabble in other weaponry. Meaning you're a collector of weapons, both firearms and swords." Karen extended two fingers as she spoke.

"Oi," Soma growled at them in annoyance and embarrassment at their extensive examination of him. Only grateful that he was hiding his blush behind his hood. But the girls kept going, Karen stepping up to the plate again.

"You only gave us a name, but if you truly didn't want to talk you would've gave us nothing. Meaning that you're the subtle curious type, who has respect for his leader enough to humor his request, regardless of how tedious you find it."

"And though you seem like the cold type, enough to drive others away, your teammates still happily sit next to you." Shōkan was wrapping it up as hers and Karen's eyes met again. "Meaning..."

"You're actually a nice guy." They both said at the same time.

"..." They all stared at them in awe of their detective work, Soma looked in annoyance.

"(Whistle) Bravo. No one has been able to figure Soma out so fast like that." Yuu praised while giving them a slow clap, slightly chuckling. "Well look at you two, already in sync."

"I tend to do that when I fight alongside someone." Shōkan answered. "I'll most likely do the same thing with you guys when we actually get a chance to fight together."

"It's a good habit to have. It keeps me on page with my surroundings and helps my chances of survival." Karen added in with a nod in agreement.

"Heh, anyways, it's you guys' turn." Yuu announced, bringing them back on topic. "Why don't you both tell us about yourselves or why you joined the Den."

"..." Karen was first, since she was on the corner of the table instead of Shōkan. She remained silent as she thought over her words carefully. "My name is Karen Ogawa, I specialize in Sniper Type Skills but still excel with the blade. I've been trained in the art of Traditional 'Way of the Sword' by my father before his death. I use to live in the Tranquil Temple area before the Aragami took over it."

"Oh! I use to live in that area as well." Sakuya spoke out as she found a common ground with one of the new members. "Along with Tsubaki, and... Lindow... before the Aragami attacked. You must have been young when it happened, I don't think I've ever seen you in the neighborhood."

"I mostly stayed in the temple," Karen answered.

"Oh! You were the mysterious kid everyone talked about, living in the temple, who could only be seen as a silhouette running through the temple." Sakuya began to giggle at the memory. "We use to call you the 'Tiny Temple Shadow'."

"I didn't get out much." Karen warmly smiled at Sakuya, before it faded as her eyes turned cold. "I could never forget that day. It's mostly the reason why I became a Gods Eater. To hunt down 'that' Aragami. The one that killed my father and took my home from me, and kill it with my own blade."

"Karen..." Alisa said in sympathy, she remember having the same thoughts when she first joined the Den. But those kind of thoughts could be destructive, if left unchecked, and could lead to devastating consequences.

"Perhaps I won't bump into that Aragami now, or even a year from now for that matter. But my chances of meeting it again is higher with you lot than by myself, and I will patiently wait until that day comes. And even it never comes, I would rather have tried than live on doing nothing."

"Whoa... that's some vendetta you got there." Kota nervously chuckled out in the tension, when suddenly something hit him. "Wait. You said your name was Ogawa. You wouldn't happen by any chance to be related to a guy by the name Shun, would you?"

"He... He is my cousin, yes..." Karen reluctantly admitted, her eyes unable to look at the group as she looked to the side. The rest of the team broke out in surprise at the news while Shōkan looked on in confusion.

"Ha! I knew it!" Kota burst out, almost drawing the other tables' attention. "Although, you guys seem totally different from each other. You don't seem to be rude and obnoxious like him, no offense. You're actually kinda mellow."

Kota observed as he looked over pass Karen, toward the 2nd and 3rd Units' table. Shun was staring at the back of Karen's head as if he was shooting lightning bolts at her. Karel must have said something Shun didn't like as he pointed at Karen, because Shun let out a huff of air and waved Karen off. Whatever he said must not have pleased Gina, because she flicked a hard pea from her plate at the back of his head in retaliation. That made Shun turn back around to his table to argue with her. Mostly him though, Gina didn't seem to care to bother enough to respond back to his outbursts.

"It's most likely from the Dickinson side of my family. They've always had a calm air about them. I was once told that 'to truly bring out the anger of a Dickinson is to bring about a great disaster'."

"Dickinson? Wait, don't tell me..." Alisa said before Karen finished what she was thinking.

"I'm related to Gina as well."

"Well, well, it's a small world after all." Yuu chuckled out. "Knowing that you're related to Gina, you must have a killer shot."

"Hm, of course."

"Who the hell are Gina and Shun?" Shōkan asked, tired of being out of the loop.

"Oh they're skilled God Eaters from the 3rd Unit. You'll probably join in on missions with them in the near future." Yuu answered, before bringing the attention back to the table. "But enough about that, it's your turn."

"Heh, I was hoping that you'd forget about me."

"Not a chance. What kind of leader would I be if I did that?"

"If we all had to open up, you're sure as hell aren't getting out of it." Soma added in to second with Yuu.

"Are you still upset about me gutting through you like a frog in a High School biology class?" Shōkan teased at him, making a vein pop out on his forehead.

"Tsk, shut up." Soma growled, only to earn a finger salute from Shōkan.

"Yes sir!"

"But not until you tell us about yourself." Yuu caught on to her game, and he blocked it.

"Damn it!"

"Any day now, Rookie." Soma mocked, grinning at the disposition she was in.

"Yeah, yeah, don't rush me. Hm, well... I guess I should start with my name." Shōkan said thoughtfully as she held her chin and tapped it with her finger. Playfully smiling at them, she brought her hand back down onto the table again. "The name's Shōkan Maebure."

"Shoukan?" Sakuya tried repeating on her tongue to get a feel for it, but the pronunciation still slightly confused her.

"No, that means 'midwinter'. It's Shōkan."

"Shokan?" Kota gave it a try as well, only to butcher her name as well. She knew they were trying, but Kota's mispronunciation of her name ticked her off the most.

"No, not Shokan! Shōkan! Do I look like a damn 'letter' to you?!"

"If the stamp fits." Soma mocked, smirking at finally finding a nerve to one of her buttons.

"Can it!"

"That's what I was wondering, what kind of parents would name their kid 'Letter'?" Kota pondered with a tilted head.

"They didn't! They named me Shōkan. Shō.kan."

"Hmph, what kind of parents would name their kid 'Redemption'?" Soma grunted out in sarcasm, not really expecting a serious answer.

"The kind with a lot of demons, probably."

"?!"

"Why don't we start from the top. Hi, my name is Shōkan. I'm a 17 year old Scorpio who likes to watch sunsets and long walks on the beach." Shōkan said sarcastically as if describing her dating profile, it seemed to the others that she was taking the whole thing as a joke. "My goal in life is to kill a man-"

"Wait, wha?!"

Shōkan went on as if she said nothing wrong. "-Get wasted at least once, go streaking on the Anti-Aragami Wall, eventually get laid, and live long enough to see my niece have children."

"Wow, uh... that's some bucket list you've got there." Yuu commented, with a hand rubbing the back of his head in awkwardness.

"More like every guys' bucket list."

"Kota!" Alisa barked at him in repulsion.

"What, it's true! Tell her, Yuu."

"It's true. I honestly contemplate streaking around the Wall when I drink a little too much."

"Ah, that's vulgar."

"Thus is the mind of a man." Yuu shrugged it off, before turning back to Shōkan. "Anyway, you said something about a niece?"

"Sure did! Now if you think my name is bad, you should see what my parents named my siblings."

"Oh, so you have a family?" Sakuya said with a smile, starting up the new topic.

"Great, there's more of you out there?" Soma groaned out, but his mood couldn't damper Shōkan's cheer. She had turned brighter at the mention of her family.

"Yup! The best siblings a girl could ever ask for!" Shōkan began to get giddy as she wiggled in her seat in excitement. "I've got a little brother three years younger than me who's a real cutie, he's gonna to grow up to be a real lady killer. And a big sister who's one hot mama with a kid of her own, she's got ten years on me and yet still looks young. My niece is such a sweetie pie. I practically go into a Sugar Coma whenever I see her. She's only four, yet super smart. And nii-san is so cool, he was my sister's childhood sweetheart. He's a... he's a good big brother-in-law to have. No matter what others say about him..."

"You make it sound like something happened to him." Yuu commented in concern by the lost of cheer in her voice.

"Let's just say, thanks to a third party, he got really sick."

"Is he okay?"

"He is for the most part. Just... a little different, is all."

"You've said a lot about your family, but what about you?" Kota asked. "Tell us about yourself."

"Me? Hm, well... I'm from a place far away from here. My previous employment is: you don't wanna know. And for the record, my hair is naturally colored this way."

"I was debating myself about that." Yuu admitted. "I don't think I've ever seen someone with that hair color before."

"It's a mutation in the genes, same for my eyes." Shōkan explained as she pointed at her purple irises. "If anything you should be wondering about that bright strawberry blonde over there."

"Wha, Kanon? Her hair tone is common." Yuu replied as he followed Shōkan's thumb pointing at Kanon, behind her.

"Yeah, but not in that bright shade." Shōkan countered. "The same goes for your girlfriend and Mr. Sunshine over there."

"W-Wha?! Oh-" Alisa was fluttered by Shōkan's accusations that she couldn't even form a proper sentence as her face felt that it was on fire.

"Clam it, Letter." Soma grunted back, annoyed that Shōkan would call out his hair like he was a chick, let alone one with an abnormality. He couldn't help but smirk as a vein popped out on Shōkan's forehead at his nickname.

"Erh! Don't call me Letter, punk!"

"Heh, I'll called you whatever I want, Shokan."

"That's it!" Shōkan barked, slamming her palms on the table as she shot up from her seat. She cracked her knuckles while walking over to Soma. "There's only one way to handle sourpusses like you."

"And what's that?" Soma shot back, eyes slanted as he tensed up for whatever Shōkan planned to do next. His eyes practically daring her to take the first shot if she was itching for a fight. He didn't like fighting girls, but he would restrain a girl to get her to back off. But he was frozen in shock as she bent down to his level and pulled him in for a hug. "?!"

"The best way to deal with negative downers is with emotional reward." Shōkan loudly whispered to Soma while her cheek was pressed against his. "Ahh, can you feel the hate melting away?"

"What the?! Get off me, you psycho!" Soma barked at her in shock, shoving her off him, and making her land on the floor on her butt.

"Ouch! Geez, you're one mean Grouch." Shōkan groaned out, rubbing the soreness out of her back. "Looks like an extreme case of puppy therapy would be the only thing to help you."

"Are you aright, Maebure-san?" Karen was now attempting to get up.

"Yeahh," Shōkan sighed out, popping her back after she got up. Looking to Soma she began to pout. "Ouch, you should treat ladies more gently, Soma-chan."

"Lady, pfft, please." Soma huffed out. "You're far from that, she-devil."

"Oh how rude. Looks like our new teammate is a bully, Karen-chan."

"Hmph, if I'm a bully then you're a predator." Soma mocked back hoping to get the last shot in.

"A predator, huh? Hmm..." Instead of getting the angry gritted teeth he was expecting, or even an embarrassed blush, he got an evil smirk with far-away-in-thought eyes. "I rather like the sound of that (evil laughter)."

"Uh..." Kota couldn't help but scoot a little further away.

"So why did you decide to become a Gods Eater, Shōkan?" Alisa asked, changing the subject.

"Why you ask? Well... aside from this gig being good for keeping down on the low. It's a great way for me to honestly provide for my family and friends."

"Don't most join for the protection of their family?" Yuu pointed out as Shōkan was returning to her seat.

"Pfft, please. Don't worry about them, they can handle themselves." Shōkan huffed, waving him off.

"Keeping down on the low?" Kota questioned her earlier wording.

"Let's just say... I was a baaaaad apple before I came to the Den." Shōkan answered with a smirk. "The Den is a great way for helping me keep straight. Not to mention the pay is good."

"... Sooo... is there anything else about yourselves you guys want to tell us?"

"No, the rest is unimportant." "Nope, you'll have to find out on your own." Karen and Shōkan both said at the same time.

"My, what interesting new rookies we've got this time around. I hope we all get along just fine." Yuu concluded with a cheeky grin. "I guess that's it for today. Why don't you girls get your rations before your stomachs try to eat us. I've gotta go take care of a mission."

"Where are you going?" Shōkan asked in curiosity.

"Ugh, I've gotta go find some items for Dr. Sakaki in the Sunken Grid area." Yuu groaned out, tiredly. "(Sigh) This is probably going to be an all-nighter mission. I probably won't be back until early morning since I've been hearing about Fallen Gboros, Borg Camlann, and Quadriga in the area."

"Hey, why don't I tag along. I could give you a hand." Shōkan volunteered.

"Are you sure? You just got back."

"Apparently so did you." Shōkan shot back. "Besides, I've been waiting to test out my new Forbidden Iceblade anyway. Just give me five minutes to grab dinner-to-go, and we're gone."

"Shōkan, these are mostly Polar Type Aragami."

"Heh, that won't stop me. It'll just make me stronger. You can trust me to have your back, Yuu. Let me show you what I am made of."

"Alright, grab your rations and show me what you've got."

"Yes!" Shōkan cheered with a fist pump as she jumped out of her seat to get her meal with Karen. "Karen-chan, are you coming too?"

"No. I'm done for the day." Karen declined with a firm tone that clearly said 'no exceptions'. "I shall rest early, to rise early for meditation and training before the day begins. My body is my temple. I must keep it in top condition."

"Hmph, oh well, suit yourself." Shōkan replied as they walked away from the table to the Chow-line.

"Dude, you're not seriously considering going alone on a mission with that chick, right?" Kota asked Yuu, whispering aloud as soon as the new girls were out of earshot.

"Why? I want to see what our new member can do. Seems like our little family just keeps getting bigger. I've gotta look after the younger siblings, you know."

"Yuu, that girl is crazy. You heard her yourself. We are most likely literally dealing with an ex-con, she could turn on you."

"I agree," Alisa seconded with Kota. "Someone of her nature is not safe to be alone with."

"Guys, honestly, I'm sure this is all a big misunderstanding." Yuu insisted. "I mean, aren't we all driven by some means for being God Eaters in some way? Give the girl a chance before you judge her."

"..." Kota and Alisa turned their heads away from Yuu, unable to say anything else because they knew deep down he was right.

"Still... be careful, Yuu." Sakuya insisted as she sadly looked into her reflection in her tea mug. "You don't know what she's capable of, or her full motive. Don't let her looks deceive you."

"Hmph, don't worry, Sakuya. I won't get into trouble."

"Which is why I'm going."

"?" Yuu had to raise an eyebrow in surprise at Soma's declaration. It was rare for Soma to volunteer to come along for a mission he wasn't assigned to.

"I'll go where you go to keep you out of trouble. And make sure you don't let your guard down."

"No, Soma, you just got back from a long mission."

"And so did you."

"Not as long as you guys."

"It's the daily grind of a Gods Eater, we're use to it. So suck it up and zip it."

"I-I'll go too!" Alisa volunteered as well, instantly raising her hand with a slight shyness.

"Oh no, Alisa, your beauty sleep." Yuu said, trying to dis-sway her in concern.

"Are you saying I need it?!"

"N-no! It's not like that! It's just... you've been out on the field for days. You probably have been craving a comfortable bed for a while now. This is probably going to be an all-nighter mission, I don't want you to have to sleep out in the wasteland if you don't have to."

"I-I can make it up later, duty comes first. And besides, I'm sure the new recruit wouldn't feel comfortable spending the night alone with two boys."

"That or you don't trust her alone with your man." Kota teased, whispering to Alisa from across the table. Earning a hard kick in the shin from Alisa as her face angrily blushed in embarrassment and denial. "Ow!"

"Well, alright, Alisa. If you insist." Yuu finally gave in, knowing that Alisa did have a point. "Let's head out in ten minutes. Be sure to stock up before you meet me at the Hanger."

*** Author's Notes ***

A fun fact: The word 'punk' goes back to the Renaissance days. It's original meaning was an extreme insult, meaning 'female prostitute'. Funny how as the years go by people forget that subtle info and put it in as an acceptable urban lingo which is still considered 'clean'.


	7. Chapter 7

Night on the Grid

"Oi, did you still not find what you were looking for, Yuu?" Soma asked, starting up the campfire as they started setting up on the highest platform in the Sunken Grid. If they were to camp out there, it was best to stay on the highest ground to make sure that none of the Aragami could sneak up on them. Soma wasn't in the mood for camping out in the wastelands again, he just got back. But he would if he had to, just to keep an eye on the strange rookie.

"Yeah, but I didn't get enough of it." Yuu answered. "Dr. Sakaki is a stickler about me getting three samples..."

_"Based on your testimony, I had an investigation done at the temple ruins. And I actually found a Raven feather. I didn't know about this, but apparently these features are being sold for quite a piece these days. So I tried comparing this Raven Feather against Lindow's data again, and... It wasn't enough evidence to prove anything yet. The data was half rotten and destroyed. So here's where you come in, I want you to go find more of these. Let's see, about 3 more should be enough. Raven Feathers, okay? I'm counting on you."_

"Tch, fine, whatever." Soma answered in his normal gloomy mood.

"Really now, I was looking forward to finally being able to sleep in my own bed again." Alisa complained.

"Then why did you come in the first place?"

"Because it was the proper thing to do, that's why, Soma!"

"You didn't have to come if you don't want to, Alisa. I'm sorry, I could call for a Chopper to pick you up, if you like."

"N-no, no! Really, I'm fine!" Alisa nervously said in shyness, shaking her hands in 'no thank you' to Yuu's kind gesture.

"Well alright, if you insist. How about you, Rookie, do you want to go back?"

"How come I didn't get the offer to go back?" Soma shot before Shōkan could reply.

"Suck it up, Soma. I know how much you can take, I don't want to insult you with such an offer. Besides, I don't know how much the rookie can take just yet. And Alisa is a lady so of course I would look after her well being more than a rough and tumble guy like yourself."

"Che, how considerate of you." Soma mocked back, rolling his eyes.

"I'm good, Boss." Shōkan finally answered back, getting the others' attention. "No need to waste gas on my account. I kinda like it out here. The nights are so quiet and dark, I can actually see the starlight out here."

"Couldn't you do that at home?" Soma asked in skepticism.

"Yeah, but I never had the time to appreciate it." Shōkan answered without taking her eyes from the night sky. Laying down on the platform on her sleeping bag, using her hands resting on the back of her head as a pillow. "You know, I never got a chance to notice the greenery growing on the Moon before. I wonder what could have caused it?"

"..."

"They say it started around the time of the accident on Aegis Island. I wonder if that is a coincident?"

"..." They all remained silent to Shōkan's suspicious inquiry to top secret information that the First Unit kept close to themselves. She was part of the team now, but they weren't ready to relinquish that information to her just yet.

"Why don't you have a snack." Yuu suggested, breaking the stifling silence. Offering her a bag of chips from his supply bag and a can of 'First Love Juice' before pulling himself out a snack. "Here, take this. You must be hungry."

"No, not really?"

"Trust me, you'll need it to regain your strength once you wake up in the morning. Just eat it."

"..." She stared at her gifts as the cold condensation from the can dripped onto her fingers.

"Oi, Yuu, I don't think the rookie would appreciate you trying to poison her with the Doc's godawful drink."

"What?" Yuu flabbergasted at Soma's declaration, Shōkan stopped in her tracks of opening the can at the mention of poison. "This stuff is the best. You guys just lack the sophisticated taste for it."

"Hmph, sophisticated is the nice way of calling it." Soma droned off.

"I-I rather like the taste actually. But I don't think the rookie will appreciate it though." Alisa commented as her eyes turned to watch Shōkan from the corner of her eye as Shōkan open the can and hesitantly took a sip.

"!" Her eyes widened as her sip turned into a chug. "This is good. Damn good! Why haven't I heard of this drink before?"

"It's brand new to the shelves." Yuu answered with a knowing smirked as he turned to look at Soma. "See, I told you she would like it!"

"Maybe it a weird New-Type thing..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, haters gonna hate." Yuu playfully waved him off before turning back to Shōkan. "I knew you would be needing that pick up after what you did to that Fallen Blaze Borg Camlann and that Fallen Quadriga..."

Yuu commented, remembering the memory of their night.

The Fallen Borg Camlann was the first one to show up on the Grid. They had to circle halfway around from the Starting Point before they found it. Circling around it, they each went after slicing at its legs. Except Shōkan, she was all over the place. She was slightly slow with that massive Buster Blade God Arc, compared to Soma, but each swing had power that dealt a massive blow. So much power that she would knock the Fallen Borg Camlann off its feet. But then she became extremely fast when Alisa would shoot her some Team-Bullets, almost savagely fast. Dashing all around the Fallen Borg Camlann, ripping off its armor while it was off its feet. First she took off the needle, then dashed to the front to smash the shield off, then dashed to the back again to take off its tail armor. It wasn't even two minutes in before the Fallen Borg Camlann was dead. The others had no idea what they had just witnessed.

But then the Fallen Quadriga showed up, jumping down from the Aragami opening from the forest in Sector I, causing Shōkan to chuckle madly while taunting the massive Aragami to come and get her. She was not elemented for this Aragami, and yet she still was delivering harsh blows to its chest armor. Boldly dashing after the Fallen Quadriga whenever it would jump back, and bringing her shield out up close to it whenever it jumped into the air. She would get kicked by the hind legs of the Aragami, but would just grin at it with bloodied lips as she jumped back into the fray. Once she got the chest armor off she stayed in that area. Shōkan didn't use Recovery Items when she needed, saving them till the very last second, much to the nervousness of her team. She was showing signs of more recklessness than their leader, Yuu. But due to that, the Fallen Quadriga went down in less than five minutes.

"You were really good out there, definitely reached more than my expectation." Yuu praised. "But how did you always hit the Aragami's weak spots? It's almost like you knew."

"Mpf," Shōkan shrugged off. "I'm a fast learner."

"I'll say..."

"Which reminds me. Alisa, can you teach me how Recovery Bullets work? I'm not entirely comfortable at the idea of shooting at my teammates to heal them."

"Hmph, isn't that a little hypocritical of you to say when you happily shoot Team-Bullets at us?" Soma mocked.

"Those are meant to boost you, not heal you. I won't feel as bad if those misfire at you than when you're at your last health and you were depending on that Recovery method."

"Tch, shouldn't you be worrying about yourself? You can't even properly use a Recovery Item while you're out there."

"They can smell weakness..."

"What?"

"The Aragami, they can smell weakness." Shōkan explained. "It's best to show them no weakness until absolutely necessary. Taking Recovery Items during a fight shows them that you're more vulnerable, you have to bluff them when times get hard, it'll better your chances of survival."

Soma blew a disgruntled sigh. "That's the bummest logic I've ever heard."

"I'm still here, aren't I?" Shōkan retorted back. "Anyway, learning to use Recovery Bullets will help mold the bluff. I can heal others, while still looking like I'm fighting strong. I just wish there was a better method of sending Recovery Items, kinda seems like an oxymoron to shot healing bullets."

"Hmph, I don't see why you're complaining. I thought it was one of your goals 'to kill a man'. You should be more than comfortable firing at us." Soma mocked at her past joke.

"I'd never aim to kill someone who's done me no harm or works beside me. Why would I try to destroy something I helped build?" Shōkan replied back, slightly offended by his statement. "Besides, I only want to kill 'one' man."

The others had thought she was joking at the Mesh Hall. By God... she was serious.

"Dammit, one would wonder why you do the things you do, Rookie. Why the hell to you think it's acceptable to kill another human being?!" Soma gave voice to everyone's thoughts.

"You're putting words in my mouth. I'm not out for the human race, there is only one man I want. Nothing more, nothing less." Shōkan explained calmly as if she was deciding dinner. "Nothing fancy either, I just want to get the job done."

"Are you even human? What kind of person would calmly contemplate killing another of their own as if they were deciding which cake to try in a Bakery?!"

"The kind that has everything to lose as long as this one man's still alive. Trust me, Soma, the world will be a better place without him."

"... Who the hell are you to decide that?" Soma was at a lost for words for a second, in disgust. "Is there a cure for your sickness? Have you no heart?"

"I do... I still do. I just intend to dirty my hands for it. Wait, (chuckle) I'm sorry... they're already dirty."

"Tst, then you have a monster's heart."

"Monster? Heh ha hahaha! If that's what it is then it's the path I've chosen for myself."

"What's wrong with you?!"

"Soma, enough! Stop it, both of you!" Yuu barked in an order, breaking up the fight before it started. Shōkan didn't even know she was starting a fight, the girl was innocently cruel. Although Shōkan looked like she didn't care to lift up a finger, he didn't want to take a chance of Soma feeling the same way. All through Soma's life, he was considered a Death god among the Fenrir Branches. He tended to bring the blame upon himself when a colleague died in action, by affiliation alone. For all that time he would give anything to be anything other than a walking Death; here she was casually talking about taking someone's life. "(Sigh) Look, we're all tired. I suggest you all get some rest, I'll take the first shift on watch duty."

"Sounds good to me!" Shōkan agreed without second thought. Pulling her sleeping bag over her body as she laid on her side to sleep. "Oh, to give you guys a heads up, you might wanna stay away from me while I'm sleeping."

"Tst, why? Are you going to try and strangle us in your sleep?" Soma mocked, half-sarcastic, half-serious.

"No I'm an extreme case Cuddlier." Shōkan corrected as she yawned the energy out of her, giving in to the Sandman. "I'll hug anything within a foot of me, while... I'm... sleeping..."

"..." She was a silent sleeper, and most likely a light sleeper too. She'd probably be able to wake up in attention if she ever picked up a sound out of the ordinary. But as they looked at her sleeping form, not even 20 minutes later, she was slowly moving closer to her God Arc. Bringing it closer to her, until she was cuddling it to her chest. They would have moved it away from her, out of fear of her cutting herself, but they couldn't touch another Gods Eater's God Arc. Not to mention the possibility of her grabbing for them instead, they'd keep an eye on her to make sure she was okay.

"She's a strange one, huh?" Yuu commented to the others.

"Strange doesn't even 'begin' to describe it." Soma corrected.

"Soma." Yuu sighed out in exhaustion.

"She's not stable, Yuu. Possibly psychotic."

"Not you too, Alisa."

"You heard her, Yuu. She called herself a bad apple, and has a goal of killing a certain man. We don't even know if that man is someone we know, or someone who works for the Den in that matter. She cannot be trusted."

"She said won't destroy something she helped build, she won't attack anybody in the Den. For all you know she's changing, she said she wanted to do an honest work, to lay low." Yuu reasoned out.

"Most likely to have the element of surprise once she finds the guy she's looking for. Get him where he least expected it, right under his nose." Soma countered.

"Guys, you're jumping the gun too quickly. You're judging her before you've really gotten the chance to know her."

"Open your eyes, Yuu. She could kill us in our sleep. The girl's a crook and too unpredictable."

"You just don't understand her yet. Not all is what it seems. Just give her time to come around and open to us."

"Or... Maybe we can just see what she's hiding." Alisa suggested as an alternative while she reached out toward Shōkan.

"Alisa, no!" Yuu called for her to stop, but it was too late. Her hand had already grabbed Shōkan's sleeping hand as Alisa entered a Resonance with her. Shōkan wasn't even conscious to have a chance to fight back...

_Alisa had found herself somewhere out in the wasteland, the land was dead and dry. A group of people, armed and uniformed in colors that Alisa couldn't recognize as any Fenrir Nation Troops, taking cover in a broken down building. Most likely one of the few good remaining Convenient Stores that were in good condition, still standing strong from the Aragami. It looked to be made mostly out of bricks and plaster, the advertizing display window long since broken and shattered. Its front entrance broken as if it was rammed through, its top corner opened for sunlight to get in as if something had taken a bite out of it. Its furniture and goods long since looted or devoured by the Aragami._

_The people hiding inside it stayed quiet with their backs turned to the wall as horrifying sounds came from outside. Readying themselves to face whatever was out there, all except for a little girl, crying on the floor. Her blue hair covering her face as a curtain, while her rifle remained neglected on the floor as her hands covered her tears from the world. Alisa didn't know what was going on, but one thing was for sure... she could tell that this little girl didn't belong there. She looked 12, too young for someone to be facing the possible fears that awaited on the other side of those walls. One of the older females in the group was not pleased with her sniffling.  
_

_"Stop crying! This is what I trained you for!" The young female barked. She looked to be in her late teens, possibly her early 20s. Her long bluish hair was held back in a high ponytail. Her locks were shiny like silk, and reached down passed her back. Her purple eyes were steely, if Alisa didn't know any better she would say that this young woman was an older version of Shōkan. But she was not... Shōkan was crying on the floor._

_"But, I'm not ready for this." Shōkan pitifully whimpered as she revealed her bloodshot purple eyes from her small hands._

_"That's a sickness, that feeling inside you. It's a weakness, don't let it divide you. Show some pride, you're a Maebure for Heaven's sake!"_

_"There's no way, I can't do this!"_

_"Even if you don't live to see another day, then fight for the glory of today! We live to tell a story, all for the glory!"_

_"B-but! I don't want to die!" Shōkan began to shake in panic, subconsciously scooting away._

_"Don't you dare!" The young woman growled at Shōkan as she noticed Shōkan beginning to shrivel backwards. She walked up to Shōkan, pulling out her pistol from her side strap and pointing its barrel at Shōkan, unlocking the Safety. "Nobody hurts alone, nobody runs alone. Nobody runs and makes it out alive! If one runs, we all die! I will kill them before that happens, even if it's you!"_

_"Fukushu-chan..." Shōkan began to cry harder, but made no move to crawl back. The young woman, this Fukushu, stared down at Shōkan with stone cold eyes before pulling the barrel away from her. _

_"Go forth, child, and make us proud. Honor is yours, don't let life weigh you down."_

_"I-I'm scared, Fukushu." Shōkan whimpered, her tears started to dry up._

_"We're all scared, Shōkan! We're running into the Front-lines!" Fukushu admitted. "Just look up to the Heaven's as it breaks from the sky, telling our part in the story of the glory!"_

_"..." The tears stopped entirely._

_"Come on, Shōkan, get up..." Came the gently voice of a young man beside Fukushu, his spiky, onyx hair was dirtied by the dust bawls of the outsides, but his blue eyes looked like a clean stream passed his dusty porcelain skin._

_"Get off your little butt and fight!" Commanded Fukushu._

_"..." Her face had turned to stone._

_"Come on, kid. We've gotta fight to go home." The male tried to encourage her more gently than Fukushu. She was still a kid, she didn't what she was getting herself into. But Fukushu had the right idea. This world... was not bias toward children. Usually they were the first one to be torn apart due to their weak predicament. Shōkan would have to toughen up in order to survive this. Picking up her rifle, the little girl got up on her feet, an innocence lost. "You ready?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Let's do this!" Fukushu barked out, charging out with the others as one unit, Shōkan following in the middle as they all kiai to the unknown._

_"FOR THE GLORY!"_

_They all seemed to charge out into a blinding light, practically burning with its brightness. Alisa was unable to see more, nor was she able to continue on, no matter how hard she tried. For some reason, it felt like something was trying to pull her back. The feeling got stronger until she was knocked out of the Resonance._

Alisa fell back on the platform, as did Shōkan, shooting away from each other. Each of them out of breath. One confused, the other pissed.

"What the hell was that?!" Shōkan barked from her spot, looking up at the sky, face scrunched up in anger.

"What was- what was that?" Alisa gasped out as she caught her breath. The guys stared on, not knowing what to do. Soma had looked on in concern while Yuu had moved to help Alisa up. Shōkan had made it enough to sit up her upper body on her lower arms' support as she angrily stared back at Alisa.

"Have you lost your damn mind?! Going through someone's mind like that. Where do you get the pussy to even try that?"

"I-I just- I wanted to see what you were hiding."

"Then ask me! Don't go running through my mind like you were going through my clothes to see what I was hiding under it!"

"Easy, Shōkan, easy."

"You 'easy', Yuu! I just got Mind Molested!"

"Alisa was just curious about you, she meant no harm. All New-Type seem to have the ability of Resonating with other New-Types. That was a full unnecessary invasion of privacy and misuse of power, and as Leader I apologize for letting it happen. I'm sure Alisa is sorry as well."

"Y-yes, I'm so sorry." Alisa bowed her head to Shōkan in sincerity.

"It's not like you to say sorry, huh?" Shōkan tiredly teased before sitting up all the way. Scratching the back of her head as she forced herself awake, pass the yawns. "Look, we're not going to make it as a team with all this tension building between us. We must act as one unit, one mind, and we cannot be that without trust. So let's talk, everything's on the table. Ask me whatever you want and I'll honestly answer you. No strings."

"..." The guys were temporarily taken aback by Shōkan's bold move of an open book. She had just had her mind invaded and she was still willing to leave her door open.

"Were you a Child Soldier?" Alisa immediately asked.

"?!" The boys were chilled by the disturbing question, what the hell happened in that Resonance?

"Damn, Alisa! Drop a bomb shell for a first question why don't yah! (Sigh) No, not really." Shōkan sighed out the answer after she calmed down from Alisa's surprise, rubbing the back of her hair. "The local Militia was low on men, so temporarily drafted any able body to secure the border."

"B-but... you were 12!"

"I was able."

"You were crying!"

"I didn't say I wasn't scared." Shōkan admitted with a chuckle with shrugged shoulders.

"What exactly were you fighting?" Yuu asked out of curiosity.

"Everything."

"?"

"Anything and everything. We were on our own at that time, everyone was considered an enemy that wasn't us, we had to survive on our own."

"And your parents allowed this?" Soma growled in appall at the thought.

"My parents have been dead since I was seven, long before I was ever drafted."

"Their demons finally caught up to them?"

"!" Shōkan's face turn into venom at Soma's inappropriate time to misuse her words. He knew his words were insensitive the moment they came out.

"Sorry..."

"Maybe I mis-worded what I meant earlier. My parents had a lot of demons 'chasing after them' in the form of one body. It ended up killing them."

"Why did you say you were a bad apple?" Alisa asked.

"After my niece was born, I joined a gang. Worked in the Underworld. It was honestly the best way for me to benefit my community. I worked so hard to protect everyone, but... all that I did, I was just running away."

"Did you ever kill anyone while you were in it?" Soma questioned, his words lacking the bite it usually had.

"No, I never got my hands 'that' dirty. Once I had gotten into power I got out of there. My niece was starting to ask questions... my little brother was starting to copy me, neglecting his education. I didn't want them to see me like that, I didn't want them to be like me. So I quit the gang and focused on my studies until I got a more respectable job. And that's how I ended up here, with you guys."

"So this man that you want to kill, he's part of your past?" Yuu tried to sum up. "And this need to kill him is an old desire from a past grudge that you wish to fade away along with your bad record?"

"No, I'm still going to kill him. New life or not, this man's gotta to die."

"What did he do to deserve your death list? Cheat you out of a deal? Stole your money?" Soma question, not seeing the reason for her dark desire.

"He killed my parents..."

"!"

"And my grandparents..."

"Killing him won't bring your parents back." Yuu tried to reason with her in sympathy. "It won't make you feel better either."

"You don't understand. It will never stop until he's dead."

"?"

"This man... this demon, in human skin, has been tormenting my family since my grandparents time. My grandfather was in his 30s when he met this monster. A young up incoming scientist, sanity crushed by the weight of his brilliance, fascinated by the genetic mutation in my grandfather's genes.

"Following him to obsession, he pursued my grandfather relentlessly. For over twenty years he hunted my grandfather. Finally succeeding once he took my grandmother hostage in order to make my grandfather yield. Experimenting on them maliciously until he killed them both. We never got to meet our grandparents, he had died by the time my father had turned into his early 20s.

"Once he had broken his old toy, he decided to go after a new. My father had inherited my grandfather's plight, forced to dodge this madman for years. He had been given peace for a time as he met my mother and had us, but those times weren't to last.

"By my seventh year, the demon had found us. Taking my parents away once they made us hid in the basement. We had heard about this man only from stories from my dad, he was like the Boogieman to us, but that day he had become a horrifying reality. My sister had went after them once, leaving me to take care our brother while she was gone. She was the only one strong enough at the time. But once she came back, all she had returned with were their bloody rings."

"..."

"After that we had lived in fear, terrified of the shadows. Afraid that the man in the lab-coat would take us away like mom and dad. But he never came, he didn't even know we existed. That is until he bumped into me and sis once out on the field. She was on duty and I was running an errand for my gang that day. I will never forget that smile, it gave me nightmares for days.

"He kept coming back to that area, looking for us. My sister always said it was to the point of insanity sense he kept doing the same thing with the hopes of getting a different result. And that's what he did for nearly two years. But eventually he got lucky and picked one of us off. Not one of my siblings, they knew better. But... he got my brother-in-law. He had picked him off when he spotted nii-san walking around with a blue haired baby with purple eyes.

"My sister was devastated by the lost. Not only had that monster taken her husband away from her, he had taken her baby..."

"..."

"My brother-in-law eventually came back, my niece in tow in his arm. But... he was never the same. He was badly broken, he had come back in chains as if he was some kind of animal. Broken chains bound to his wrists and neck as if he had broken from a cage. When he had come back to us... we couldn't even recognize him. My niece left untouched, most likely he would never let anyone come near her. We don't know, he will never be able to talk about what happen to him those days, and my niece was too young to remember it, she wasn't even one yet. My niece will never remember what my nii-san once was, only what he has become.

"It was a horrible day, my sister had nearly broken, and... I could hardly bare it. And that would be the last time we ever saw him as his old self, the very last time." Shōkan was quiet for several long seconds. "You wonder why I want this man dead, why I'm so bent on killing him? Well let me ask you this. Why would anyone break down a man, experimented and torture him, injected him with an incurable disease that will follow him for the rest of his life all in the name of this so called SCIENCE?"

"..."

"He has shown signs of cruelty far worse than any Aragami I have come across, toying with a prey and targeting it for years on end. This man has tormented the Maebure family for three generations, and soon he will stretch out to four. It cannot stop, it will not stop, this man will keep going until he wipes the Maebure name off the face of the earth. And the worst part is, we cannot hide forever with our damn bluish hair and purple eyes to give us away in a crowd. And as a dominant gene, it will continue to give us away."

"Shōkan..." Alisa called out to her in sympathy.

"But I'll be damned if I let that creature brings my niece into this sick game of his. I've lived in fear for almost all of my life, and I won't let her feel the same. I'm tired of living as a scared child, I'm tired of running, these years almost damn near killed me." Shōkan explained with clinched fists, her nails digging painfully into her palms. "Mark my words, I will kill that man. For the crimes against humanity and the Maebure family, that man _must_ die."

"..."

"So go ahead and judge." Shōkan said, falling back into her sleeping bag. "This is how you remind me of what I really am."

"A killer?"

"A Redeemer." She corrected Soma, he and the others seem less suspicious about her. The questions weren't coming out so she hoped that she could go to sleep soon before the last pair of Fallen Gboro decided to show up.

"Answer me truthfully, Shōkan. Is it someone in the Den?" Yuu asked in all seriousness. His next course of action depended on her answer.

"No." A sigh of relief escaped from them. "But he is in a Fenrir Branch. Hiding as a Research Member."

"How old is this guy?"

"Old enough to out live my grandparents." Shōkan rolled over, turning her back to them, already tired of the questions as sleep began to take her again. "So... are you going to try and stop me?"

"If you were concerned of that, why would you even tell us all this?" Soma questioned her logic.

"I told you, trust is built on honestly. We wouldn't be able to be a team if you didn't trust me. So are you going to turn me in, or what...?"

"We'll wait until the time comes to stop you." Yuu answered. "For now, I have one more question."

"What?"

"Are you here for other reasons, other than what you've told us?"

"Yes..."

"Which are...?"

"Sorry, you used up your last question." Shōkan yawned, cuddling back with her God Arc. "Try again another day."

"Can you tell us his name?" Soma asked, insisting for an answer before she fell back asleep again.

"His name... is... cursed..." She was out for the night, leaving the others alone to themselves again.

"..."

"See, she's not so so bad." Yuu shrugged to the others in 'I told you so'.

"She's chasing a lost cause."

"Soma."

"She'll never find the guy if he's hiding in the Research Department, let alone reach him. And if she miraculously does, I pray she has enough soul left not to take the shot."

"She's just trying to protect her family." Yuu tried to reason, going into thought as he contemplated her rationality. "You know how cruel scientist can be to get what they want. I can't imagine the detail of what this man has done to her family to drive her so far as to see no other solution than to kill him."

"For that matter, why he's so pressed about them to the point of obsession."

"I think... in a way, Shōkan blames herself for what's been happening to her family. How her youth made her feel so powerless to stop them." Alisa reasoned, sadly going by related feelings. "She's trying so hard to make up for the times she could do nothing. However, if she continues down this path it could lead to self destruction, for her and others."

"Alisa..."

"No, it's okay, Yuu. I think I understand her better now. She's just like how I was when I first came here. Only... she's so much stronger than I was back then. She's relying on her own power, no matter how warped it is. She's an amazing person."

"She's still weird though." Soma commented as he watched Shōkan snuggle closer to her God Arc, actually wrapping a leg around it. "Oh come on, that's just too much."

"Still... I wish I was that strong when I first started off as a Gods Eater."

"Hey, that was then and this is now. You're a different person than you once were. You've become so strong, an ultra-powered Gods Eater that I could trust to have my back."

"Yuu..."

"We've all changed. Take Mr. Loner there for example." Yuu pointed out, while actually pointing a thumb toward Soma.

"Don't go giving me weird nicknames."

"Oh, should I start calling you Mr. Sunshine instead? It's rather catchy."

"Can it, Yuu."

"Well, there's one thing for sure. You guys can trust to sleep around Shōkan, she's not going to strangle us." Yuu said before observing her snuggle into her God Arc. "Cuddle us to death, though, now that's another story."

"..."

"I suggest that you sleep while you can. You have next watch, Soma."

"Ah man..."

*** Hours Later ***

"Get up." The bark of Soma's stern command had Shōkan bolting up in a second, flipping over to a crouched position with God Arc in hand. "They're here."

"About time." Shōkan replied, the sleep long since gone from her system. Soma was right, she was a light sleeper.

Shōkan was just glad the Gboros had finally decided to show up. The sun was already starting to shine behind the gray clouds, and the camp fire had long since died out with the coming morning fog. Yuu and Alisa were already in a ready position as the first Gboro roamed around under their platform, not knowing of the dangers lurking above it.

"This is it. Are you guys ready?" Yuu asked, tightening his grip on his God Arc.

"Ready!" "Ready." "Ha haha! You know it!" Alisa, Soma, and Shōkan replied at the same time.

"Okay, let's do this!"

"Let's go!" "Go." "Let's get started."

Just as Alisa and Yuu jumped down to meet the Fallen Gboro, a Polar Fallen Cocoon Maiden had sprung out of the platform they were just on. Another Polar Cocoon Maiden and Blaze Maiden popped up not too far from them either.

"Che, oh great." Soma groaned out in exhausted sarcasm as he and Shōkan turned around to block the Cocoon Maiden's spikes with their shield. "Back me up."

"I won't let you have all the fun!" Shōkan replied as they both charged in on the Polar Cocoon Maiden. Though not properly elemented for this Aragami, their powerful hits took it out in three blows.

Once the core was extracted, Shōkan left the Fallen Gboro to Yuu and Alisa as she went to take out the other tow Fallen Cocoon Maidens. She attacked the Polar one first, sense it was the closest, but she was knocked down by a fireball shot at her by the Blaze Maiden. Staying down for cover behind the low platform, Shōkan waited out the Polar Maiden's spike attack before jumping back up again, the low barrier barely blocking the long spikes from her.

"Idiot, don't overdo it." Soma grunted at her as he drew the attention of the Blaze Maiden, leaving the Polar Maiden open to Shōkan.

Taking the opening with gratitude, she jumped up and finished the Polar Maiden off, extracting the core before helping Soma finish off his. By the time they were done, the Fallen Gboro came crawling their way. Shōkan just barely extracted the Blaze Maiden's core in time to take cover behind its corpse from the Gboro's head cannon attack.

"Ugh, this thing is like every boys' fantasy; like a shark, a crocodile, and a cannon got into a three-way and had a baby." Shōkan joked around.

"Here!" Alisa called to Shōkan as she fired her Team-bullets.

"I'll show you what I'm made of!" Due to the elemental disadvantage, Shōkan's hits weren't doing any damage, but they did manage to knock the Gboro off its fins. Once down, Shōkan went around the Gboro and struck it in its head cannon where her hits did the most damage. The cannon was destroyed in two swings. "It's not enough."

"Take this!" Alisa said, firing her some more Team-bullets.

"It's getting away." Soma growled out as the Fallen Gboro jumped into the water to make a run to the center of the Sunken Grid area.

"Oh no it doesn't. Everyone, we're going after it." Yuu ordered as he ran toward Sector J, the others following behind.

"Yuu, the other Gboro!" Alisa warned as the last Fallen Gboro jumped into the arena, behind them.

"Ignore it for now. Everyone, just focus on the other Aragami and keep running!"

They had out ran the Gboro behind them, due to their burst and made their way to the injured on in Sector J. Shōkan was quick to rush into the fray and start striking at the Gboro's broken cannon. They had already taken the Fallen Gboro down by the time the other one came wobbling in. It was just about to take a bite out of Shōkan as she was extracting the defeated one's core, when Shōkan did a side turn. Staring down the attacking Gboro with aggressive eyes, giving it a 1-2-3 combo punch with her dominate right hand while the other held her God Arc.

"Get out of here!" Shōkan barked at the Gboro commandingly as her fist made contact with its head. To everyone's surprise at her unexpected move, it had actually worked. The Gboro was knocked back, giving he time to pull our her God Arc from the other Gboro. She had a street fighter style to her technique that told Yuu that she was raw and down to earth, willing to do anything to get the job done. Making sure she was the one that would be coming out of this fight alive.

"Uh, should we go easy on it?" Yuu joked around in fake pity for the Aragami.

"Not a chance." Soma replied, rolling his eyes as he started attacking the head cannon along with Shōkan. "Get them."

Yuu and Alisa provided support fire as they circled around the Gboro to keep it confused. However, the Gboro soon got frustrated by their constant blows and started swinging around itself wildly with its fin, flinging ice chunks along the way. Shōkan had no time to dodge as she took one right in the kisser.

"Ugh," Shōkan growled out in frustration as she sat up from the ground, cupping her bruised cheek as she spat out the blood. "I just got manhandled by an Aragami."

"Don't let your guard down." Soma lectured as he brought down a crushing blow onto the Gboro.

"Right." Shōkan groaned, getting on her feet again. "I'll remember that."

"Ahh!"

"Alisa!" Yuu cried out in concern as the Gboro rammed through Alisa. The Gboro had taken a number out of all of them, and Alisa was handing out more Team-bullets instead of Recovery Bullets.

"I've got her." Shōkan reassured. But Yuu knew she didn't get the concept of Recovery Bullets just yet, there was no way she could handle this. Unless she was pulling out a Recovery Wall. "Come here!"

She had dropped a Recovery Wall in between the team and went to distract the Gboro while they went to heal.

"Ahh, thanks." "I'm sorry." "Thanks." They all said to her as they ran through the Recovery Wall. Joining Shōkan to finish off the Fallen Gboro afterwards.

"We did it, good job everyone." Yuu praised with a grin.

"Mission cleared, good job." Alisa praised in agreement.

"Ahh, I feel better. This'll make a great pay-dirt." Shōkan happily chimed in.

"Can we go now?" Soma groaned out, already ready to head back to the Den.

"Hold up." Yuu said, as he looked through the Gboros, to find another Raven Feather. "Jackpot. Alright, we can head back now."

"That feather..." Shōkan gasped out.

"You've seen it before, Shōkan?"

"Uh, no, it's just really pretty, that's all."

"Huh? If you say so. Apparently they're going for quite the penny on the market these days. But I have a better use for them."

*** Author's Notes ***

Fukushu- or 'Fukushuu', it means 'Vengenance'


	8. Chapter 8

The Family Reunion

It had been early morning by the time the others had gotten back from their mission. The sun had just broken through the clouds to enrich the earth with its warm, golden morning glow.

Karen was purchasing a warm beverage from one of the machine dispensers when the team had come up from the Mission Elevator to the Entrance.

"Welcome back." Karen greeted to them.

"Ohayo," Shōkan waved tiredly at her.

"I trust that the mission went well."

"We're still alive, aren't we?" Soma retorted, cranky from his rough sleep last night.

"Jeez, Grouch, I guess you're really not the morning type." Yuu teased at him, before turning back to Karen. "Anyway, the mission went well. We met our objective, and didn't lose anyone."

"Souka... yokatta."

"You're up pretty early today." Yuu commented.

"I always rise early before the sun rises to train."

"Yikes, that sounds rough. Aren't you exhausted?"

"Exhaustion is a weakness of the mind. If I don't want to feel exhausted I won't, it's just as simple as that. If I tell myself 'I am awake', I will be awake."

"Whoa. That's deep."

"That's what she-"

"Don't you dare." Soma growled at Shōkan, stopping her before she could even do the joke.

"It's a basic Kendo philosophy." Karen shrugged off.

"Hey, since you're up, why don't we all have breakfast together?" Shōkan offered.

"Gina asked me on a mission this morning."

"Honestly, I'm tired." Alisa declined her offer as well. "I think I'll just go to my room, lie down, and call it a night."

She glanced out the high window and corrected herself almost immediately. "Or morning."

"Seconded." Soma agreed, nodding his head to the others in 'good day', as he left in the elevator with Alisa.

"Sorry, Shōkan, I gotta give these samples to Dr. Sakaki right away. Why don't you call it a day and take some rest yourself? You've clearly earned it." Yuu decided to take the stairs to the Lab Floor to save time on waiting for the elevator to come back, since he was rather tired and impatient at this point.

"Tst, fine." Shōkan groaned out in a pout at everyone's rejection, Yuu gave the girls a back-turned-wave before going down the stairs. The elevator had returned just in time for Shōkan to hitch a ride, giving Karen a nodded goodbye before the elevator doors closed.

Once the doors shut and the elevator started to move, a sly grin came over Shōkan's face while she was alone in the lift. "It'll give me time to do some digging anyway."

Back in the Entrance, Karen waited for Gina to show up. Patiently working on a strong cup of coffee, only to be greeted by Shun and his teammate, Karel.

"You?! What are you doing here?" Shun exclaimed, pointing accusingly, causing Karen's eyes to slant in annoyance.

"I could ask you the same." Karen countered.

"We're here for a mission, a good paying one too." Shun huffed in cockiness, puffing out his chest. "It'd be much too hard for a rookie like you to handle. So run along, squirt. I don't have time to babysit you, kid."

"Hmph. Do not wave me off like some stray. I had no use for you to look after me as a child; I certainly have no need for it now, either."

"Well _sorry_." Shun said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "I forgot how self sufficient you were. You don't need nothing from anybody, since you're the 'Wonder Child'. But that means nothing here. A man's value is based on his kills and rewards!"

"Tst!"

"Oh, right! You're a woman. Well in that case, excuse me!"

"Hmph, Arrogant Pig."

"Pompous Brat."

"Trouble Maker!"

"Stuck-up bi-!" They were practically in each other's face when Karen decided that she had had enough.

"Che, I don't need this." Karen practically hissed as she got up to walk to the lower floor, away from Shun.

"Hmph, fine, me either! We'll just wait for Gina, and go."

"?" She stopped in her tracks. Wasn't Gina suppose to be going with her this morning? "Nani?"

"What, jealous? Gina's going on a mission with us." Shun had puffed up again, enjoying the sensation of striking a nerve with Karen.

A look of honest confusion crossed Karen's face. "No, she had asked me to join a mission with her."

"You must be tripping, she asked us." his would have gone on forever if both their phones hadn't gone off at the exact same time.

"?" They both humorously raised an eyebrow at the same time, like a family trait, when they saw that they had gotten a text message from Gina.

"Uhm, you guys. Are you going to complete the 'Separate Kings' Mission?" Hibari asked the from the Missions' Desk. "Gina had signed you all up for that mission this morning."

"?!" Upon hearing the news, they both had opened their texts.

"Shut up and do it." Karen read hers aloud. Looks like Gina was taking it into her own hands to make the siblings talk to each other. "Dammit, Gina-nee-san."

"Che, as if. Like I'd ever go on a mission with you, pipsqueak."

Karen softly exhaled, partly out of annoyance and partly out out of amusement at Gina's thinking. "I understand if you're not man enough to keep up with me. I'll go on the mission on my own."

"What?!" A vein popped up on Shun's forehead in vexation. "I'll show you, get your gear ready! We're going on a rampage!"

"Hmph, so be it." Karen calmly followed after Shun as he stormed into the Mission Elevator. Karel hanging close beside her as they headed out int the God Arc Hanger, letting Shun get some distance on them.

"So I finally get to meet the little cousin Shun talks about so much."

"..." Karen hid a questioning eyebrow gesture as Karel looked her over. She found it surprising that Shun would even talk about her. What has he been telling his teammates? Lies? Loathsome thoughts no doubt.

"Hm... Outwardly, you look like any other brat... I have no idea what Shun was talking about."

"?"

"Ah, well, good luck earning your keep!" Karel waved back at her as he went on ahead of her.

"Tst, grown ass bullies." Her fists tightened at her sides. "I'll show them, I'll show them both..."

*** Meanwhile in Dr. Sakaki's Lab ***

"Thanks for the features. This should be enough, I'm glad you work so fast!"

"Sure, it only took me all night to find them." Yuu said sarcastically.

"Ooh, I can see that. Those rings under your eyes look terrible."

"I didn't get much sleep last night." Yuu nervously laughed while rubbing the back of his head.

"Well, I'll make sure your sacrifice of beauty sleep is not in vain." Dr. Sakaki teased. "I need to pass these over to analyzation. Hold on a bit. In the mean time, why don't you get some rest. You've worked enough for today."

*** Forgotten Carrier ***

"Let's get started." Karel confidently ordered as they jumped down from the Starting Point. Karen took the lead with her light feet.

"Let's begin."

"So, uh... what are we facing today?" Shun asked as they ran across the bridge. The sound of stomping paws grew louder as they came closer to the other side. The loud roar of a Dyaus Pita gave them their answer as it spotted them on the uplifted part of the bridge.

"Just him," was all Karen said before charging after the beast to meet it halfway. She had gotten a good slice at the Dyaus Pita's face as it stopped right in front of her. But was unable to pull out her shield in time as the Aragami jumped back to leave her behind a bolt blast. "Gh!"

"Hey, let me do something!" Shun insisted as he jumped into the fray while Karel was still knocked down, Karel provided support fire. Only for the Dyaus Pita to start up a lightning sphere attack as Karel got back on her feet.

"Sorry." Karen denied the Aragami's attack as she blocked it with her shield. In anger, the Dyaus Pita decided to swipe her with its paw. Smacking her back down again since she had put away her shield a moment too soon. Shun took advantage of the moment by going for a Devouring bite.

Karen had let out a hiss at her cousins lack of concern for the welfare of his teammate, let alone his family. He didn't even seem too concern as his partner had been caught by the Dyaus Pita's second try of its lightning sphere attack.

Drawing the attention of the Dyaus Pita away from Karel, Karen had distracted the Aragami for Karel to pull himself together again. But she had taken some damage to the face as the Dyaus Pita tried to do a back-flip back, smacking Karen with its hind leg in the process.

"Pretty slow, aren't you?" Shun mocked as he went in for another devouring bite, whether toward the Aragami or her, Karen did not know. But she did know that Shun had taken a hind paw to the face just like her as the Dyaus Pita tried to back-flip away from him. "Wah!"

"Hmph, fool." Karen mocked with a smirk as Sun landed on his bum, admiring the irony of the moment. Only to jump back into the game when Karel took a couple of hard shots to the body as the Dyaus Pita fired multiple lightning balls at him. Rolling out of the way of the Aragami's second round, she changed into Gun-mode. Firing all the Recovery Bullets she could at Karel while the Dyaus Pita was cooling back down. "Here."

"Heh, no need." Karel brushed off in a brave front as he felt the relief of the Recovery Bullets come over him. She could tell from her monitor that he had taken a number during the fight. He had needed those shots more than he was letting on.

It had taken all of her OP to get Karel's health in a safe spot, so she changed back to Blade-mode. Karen had dashed after the Dyaus Pita as it back-flipped away, joining Shun as he slashed at the Dyaus Pita's face. His sword skill was as good as she remembered, but it had lacked the discipline. Shun had not been keeping up with his training, in body and mind. He was even competing with her on who could get the most hits in. Though she had no intentions of participating in such childish competitions, it had distracted her enough to not notice the rising paw of the Dyaus Pita.

"Gah!" She cried out as its claws sliced into her cheek, giving her the slap of her life. Shun had dashed out of the way in time, leaving her to be the only one with the disgrace of being smacked to the ground. The Dyaus Pita had roared out at her as if in some twisted form of laughter.

"Aw, did the little kitty knock you down." Shun cooed in mockery, causing Karen to grit her teeth in rage. "Don't let your guard down."

"Urusai!" Karen barked at him as she rose to her feet, unconsciously shifting the way her hands held the God Arc. "Watashi... watashi wa sono basho ni kono neko o haichi shimasu!"

She had dashed in front of the beast, changing halfway as she fired all her Oracle Bullets at its face, knocking it back. Once she was out, she changed back all the way into Blade-mode and took an upper slice at the Dyaus Pita's torso.

Having enough of the abuse, the Dyaus Pita decided to make a run for it. Not having that, Karen chased after her prey.

"Iku!"

"Hey, speak in English, you brat!" Shun yelled to Karen as they followed after her. He began to growl and mumble as she continued to ignore his command.

"Horobosu." She said aloud to herself as she took a Devouring bite into the unsuspecting Dyaus Pita. She had contemplated **not** firing Shun some Team-bullets for a second, but in the end blood won over grudge.

Even if he was a jerk, there was no denying Shun was still her cousin - and Ogawa's looked after each other. So Karen fired to him two Team-bullets, while giving the last one to Karel. "Here you go."

"I guess there's no way around it!" Shun boasted as he charged at the Dyaus Pita.

"Hm, you've got strange taste." Karel commented.

"Don't remind me." She let out a grunt as one hard slash broke off the Aragami's head armor.

The Dyaus Pita jumped over her, trying to get away from her blade. But she simply changed into Gun-mode and made up for the distance. Angered by her constant bombardment, the Dyaus Pita fired multiple lightning balls at Karen, causing her to roll out of the way. But she couldn't roll away from the last two. Falling down, she got back up again only to be greeted by the sight of the Dyaus Pita leaping at her.

"Bust through!" Shun said aloud as he delivered a hard blow at the Dyaus Pita's paw, knocking it off its descent trajectory angle and away from Karen.

"Out of my way." Karel pushed passed Karen to go after the toppled over Dyaus Pita.

"Hmph, reloading." Karen huffed as she changed into Gun-mode, dashing sideways, away from Karel. Taking aim, she waited for the target to get back up on its feet before taking the head-shots. Each shot delivering a killer blow. "Heh, I've gotcha."

The Dyaus Pita head faced Karel directly, its eyes locked onto its most annoying target in the past few minutes as he had constantly fired a hail of bullets at it from the time Shun knocked it down to the ground until now. It was preparing to unleash lightning balls at Karel when Karen rolled in, changed into Blade-mode, and reached out as far as she could with her left hand as she let loose a powered downward slash, while keeping as much distance as she could from the target while still stopping its attack with her own.

Karen knew this attack was dangerous and left her open, but it was an efficient attack if she could guarantee the hit. The Dyaus Pita had been knocked back, giving Karen time to pull her arm back and cover her exposed torso again. Shun had jumped in to join her, only to have the Dyaus Pita jump over them to leap at Karel, who rolled out of the way.

Upset and on its last legs, the Dyaus Pita began to charge up a bolt sphere attack. It had almost succeeded, only to be brought down by Karen's slide slash from behind as she cut into its side. The Dyaus Pita let our one final roar before it fell lifelessly to the ground.

"[Empty Sky Sword Style, Judgment Dirge.]" Karen half-whispered to herself as she gave a salute to the fallen Aragami with her katana.

It wasn't everyday that Karen encountered a target that forced her to use her yet-incomplete advanced attacks. The Dyaus Pita certainly earned her respect in that regard.

"It was a piece of cake after all, huh?" Shun boasted to Karen in recollection of her earlier statement.

"Mission cleared." Karel and Karen said at the same time while she and Shun were extracting the core from the Dyaus Pita. The moment had been an awkward surprise for a second, but then they brushed it off as if noting had happened. Karel was use to doing the same thing with Gina, so he assumed that it was just something in the blood.

"Sleepy." Karen had sighed out in boredom. Already ready to go back to the Den, and possibly meditate away this migraine-of-a-morning.

"Everyone, make sure you haven't gotten anything." Karel reminded as he followed behind her. Seeing his team leaving, Shun quickly yanked his God Arc out of the Dyaus Pita and ran up to catch up with them, dashing to the side of Karen.

"I got lucky today with that Emperor Fang I extracted out of that Dyaus Pita." Shun said in cockiness as he tried to make small talk with Karen. "Hey, how many did you get?"

"Nothing note worthy. All the items gathered today are useless to me anyway."

"Huh?"

"Hm, the reward_ is_ a pittance." Karel commented.

"We should bring Kanon along next time." Shun suggested. "I don't know how, but every time we drag her along we get rarer stuff."

"Kanon?"

"She's a Medic Cannon-Type from the Second Unit. Her shots are destructive and extremely inaccurate." Karel explained with a knowing smirk. "Unlike you, she never misses a mark but never hits the target."

"?" _[Never misses but never hits? How is that even possible?]_

"Don't worry, little cuz. I'll show you around until you can stand on your own feet." Shun assured to her in pride while giving her a hard pat on the back. She huffed in irritation at the force he had put behind that action, but waved it off.

"I can handle myself, alone. I've been doing it so far for years. I don't need help now." Karen claimed before walking off ahead of the guys, leaving them behind.

"..."

"Heh, so much for looking after her, Big Cousin." Karel teased at Shun with a chuckle, knowing he had struck a nerve with that guy.

"Shove it, Karel!" Shun huffed out with a shove before grumbling out. "Seriously, what's up with that kid?"

*** Dr. Sakaki's Lab ***

"Welcome back." Dr. Sakaki greeted to Yuu with his trademark fox grin as Yuu came through the door. "How was your nap?"

"Refreshing. It was just what I needed." Yuu answered with a covered up yawn. "So how have the results been coming along?"

"The results came in." Dr. Sakaki answered, making Yuu shoot wide awake. His heart on edge for an answer. "I am 100% sure that this is a part of Lindow."

"(Sigh) That's the best news I've heard all week."

"Now that only means two things." Dr. Sakaki continued on. "One, that he is very likely still alive. Two, is the progression of his Aragami Transformation. The progress of his transformation can be determined by this say Aragami-based material, called 'Black Wing'..."

"Black Wing? What about it?"

"We were able to find out that the Oracle Cells are out of control, by looking at the cells of the wings. Now, I have to request a few things. To proceed with a quick capture of Lindow if possible and..." Dr. Sakaki explained, all his teasing behavior tossed aside. "In order to find out how far his transformation has gone, gather Black Wings. This is more serious than I thought."

"Dammit, if I had known that sooner I wouldn't have sold the Black Wings I found to the Merchant. The penny they added up to was not worth it, compared to this. (Sigh) Don't worry, Doc, I'll get more."

*** Meanwhile in Shokan's room ***

Empty cans of 'First Love Juice' had been tossed all over the floor around the room's Terminal as Shōkan spent most of her day searching through its NORN database. Only stopping for light snack breaks a few steps away, reading through the screen for anything to help her plight.

"Okay, let's have a look-see..." Shōkan said aloud to herself as she searched through the Terminal's Database. "Aegis Project: Humankind's last hope, applying Bias Factor to material engineering and archtecture.

"Post objective: to build a colossal arcology protected by Aragami armor. Dubbed the Aegis Project because its key is a great Aragami Armor, or perhaps a Wall of God."

"Heh, well that's a little blasphemous of them." She mumbled to herself.

"The Chief Supervisor is Director Schicksal, who proposed this project. It has been an ongoing project since Fenrir was founded, and Aegis Island is now being built offshore from the Far East Branch.

"That's nice, but I want to know what happened during the Aegis Island collapse. Let's see what the second file has to say... What?! Restricted?! Damn it!" Shōkan growled out before hissing out the rest of her hot air to calm down. "Fine, let's see what the other files have to say...

"Here we go! Aegis island: A man-made island located about 50km from Fenrir's Far East Branch. Surrounded on all sides by an Aragami Armor so high it could pierce the heavens.

"Heh, exaggerating much?

"Crucial to the Aegis Project, and as such very few are permitted to enter. When completed, it will be able to house all of humankind and the other surviving life-forms.

"My, such a big promise Fenrir was making to the people. Hmph, the only thing ever said to house all of mankind was the Tree of Ymir, and even the Ark of Noah could only hold a limited few of each species. Wait, there's another file on Aegis Island."

She clicked on the file, only to have the file blocked off by large, red, bold letters that took up the whole screen, saying 'OFF LIMITS'.

"Cut off again! This Terminal is starting to infuriate me." Shōkan hissed through her teeth before calming down again. "Ugh, let's just find out who this Johannes guy is. Uh, right... bah ba-ba-ba-bah! There! Ooh, he even has four data files. How special.

"Johannes von Schicksal, who's that under his file...? Aw, no way! Soma von Schicksal! Ha! Soma's working along side his Daddy?! Aw, how cute!" She could barely hold in her laughter at the thought.

"Says here that he's 45 and one of the founding member of Fenrir, and leading expert on Aragami research. Talk about big, he's also the Director of the Branch. Wait, where is he now?"

She moved on to the next file before forming up any of her own conclusions. "Advocate of the Aegis Project, an extension of his own Aragami Armor research. As of late, he has been in charge of maintaining the outpost to promote the Aegis Project, as well as surprising the God Eaters. Since appointing Dr. Sakaki as Chief Supervisor of Aragami Technology Development, basement to have withdrawn from active research himself.

"Interesting, but that's not what I need. Come on, give me something good." She said before clicking on the third file. "Aegis Island was partially destroyed, due to a surprise attack by the Aragami, Arda Nova. The Director of the Far East Branch was... was killed during the collapse of Aegis, the same day... Oh... poor Soma.

"Such is the line of Fenrir HQ. But that's bull if that's all there is to it. The pain of countless deaths cannot be explained by something as simply and lack of detail like that. They're hiding something. Something they don't want to reach the public. But what?

"Come on, Director Johannes, what does your last file have to say...? Restricted to the Far East Branch only?! Where the fuck do they think I am?! This is really starting to annoy me!" In her rage, she had smacked her hand across the screen. Making the Category of People selection scroll down hastily. Making it land on a random name. But it was a name she had quickly recognized and grew to despise fairly quickly.

"Daigo Oguruma? Dr. Oguruma?! What the hell are you doing here? I thought you disappeared off the face of the Earth." She said aloud before clicking on his file, her eyes quickly scanned the entry.

"Apparently not. You've been playing Doctor at the Russia Branch, and Alisa's doctor no less. Ooh, this is a small world after all, huh? Heh, makes me wanna puke. Tss, they even gave you a second file. What have you been up to while you ceased terrorizing the Wastelands?

"Hm... Alisa's primary doctor, he conducted regular therapy sessions for her mental health during which he was hypnotizing her to attack Lindow.

"Hypnotizing my butt, why would they call it something dumb like that? It's not like he swung a pocket-watch in front of her or something. Why don't they stop sugarcoating it and just say he brainwashed her. They're not doing Alisa any favors by sparing her feelings, what's done is done. Wait, Lindow? The former First Unit Leader? Now why would he want him gone? Did he get in the way? Or was he too close to something?

"Well, reading on... He was involved in the Ark Project led by the former Director Schicksa, but vanished mysteriously after their plot was revealed. The Far East Branch has requested each Branch to search for him, but has so far come up empty...

"Hmph, no doubt he crawled back to that Animal-of-a-Mentor. At least you formed some purpose by giving me a lead. The Ark Project... what **is** that? Maybe it can explain what happened at Aegis." Shōkan hands deftly maneuvered through the entries until the display showed the one she sought.

"Ah ha! Great! It has two files on it, now let's see... What?! Restricted to the Far East Branch First Unit only! I **am** a member of the First Unit! Why the hell won't it open! This SUCKS!"

She shouted as she punched the screen, trying to even out her breaths so one could calm down. It was working, but she was still red in the face with anger.

"(Huff) Well (huff), if I can't access the files in my level (huff) then I'll just have to hack into someone else's file who can (huff)." Shōkan said as she planned out her next move aloud, smirking as an idea hit her. "And, I know just the guy..."

"Devour, Devour

Suffocate your own Empire

Devour, Devour!"

"?" Her phone went off with a special ringtone she only assigned to one Caller ID. Without looking at the screen, she clicked the 'Answer' button.

"It's your final hour-"

"Yo!" She greeted in better spirit to the person on the other line. "Hey how've you been?... (Huff) No, I'm not upset... I didn't break anything, I just got frustrated, okay?... No, I haven't found anything yet. I'll have to keep looking... Don't worry about me, I can take care of it. I'll have to just keep looking... I said don't worry, I can take care of it. You just focus on your work... Don't think I don't know you, little man. You're a lot like me when I was your age, you better not slack off the way I did. If I find out you skipped any of your lessons or get a call about you, I'll come back to kick your own ass myself... Just be good for me while I'm gone, okay?... Tell the others I said 'hi' too... Sure, what do you need, I'll get it..."

*** Author's Notes ***

Souka- informal 'I see'

Yokatta- 'that's good'

Urusai- 'shut up'

Watashi wa sono basho ni kono neko o haichi shimasu- I will put this cat in its place

Iku- Go

Horobosu- devour (destroy)

Ringtone song: Devour by Shinedown

Co-Author's Notes

What's up, people? SanguisAnima here, Id like to take a moment to thank anyone and everyone who's taken the time to read our collaboration work. We'd also greatly appreciate any reviews, comments, questions, clarifications, or other what-have-you's you may have. (Except flaming, of course.)

*Ancient2: Actually I don't mind flaming, everyone's entitled to their own opinion. Just no death threats, I strongly draw the line there.*

There's still quite a ways to go with the story progression, and my wonderful co-author still has a lot of tricks and twist ready to be released. So I suggest y'all sit back, relax, get a bucket of popcorn; read on and let your imagination take you to an alternative reality of soulless creatures that threaten the very existence of humanity, and find out more about the valiant team who fight back in humanity's name to rid the world of this threat. (Why does it sounds so damn familiar to something else...? Gah, nevermind.)

Sanguis out for now.

Oh, li'l tidbit for everyone before I go. This particular chapter has (only) 4536 words as of proofreading time (according to my BlackBerry's WordToGo, where I write and/or proofread almost everything) with the chapter title, but not yet counting the A/N's

::: REFERENCES LIST :::

Empty Sky Sword Style

The Empty Sky Sword Style (KokuuAozora Ken Yōshiki) uses both free-form and "formed" styles to create a nearly unpredictable yet formidable sword technique. It draws both on conventional sword styles as well as the practitioner's own instincts and reflexes. It was developed by the heads of the different Ogawa clan branches a little over a century ago. This sword style is also used exclusively by the Ogawa clan members, fitting their name which means "little river".

This style has three basic tiers and two intermediate tiers of "signature" or identifying attacks. Depending on the family branch, it may be expanded further. Typically each branch has one advance tier and one "ougi" tier.

Different branches of the Ogawa clan also have different approaches to this particular style. Shun Ogawa, the veteran long blade God Arc user from the 3rd Unit, displays remarkable grasp of the basic tiers, but has yet to show any adaptations or evolutions of his swordplay. Karen Ogawa, on the other hand, has expanded her style enough to reach "ougi" or master-level skill and create three ougi attacks of her own.

The list below describes Karen's attacks for each tier.

Tier 1

Judgment (quick one-blow killing attacks)

- Requiem: Karen holds her blade high and delivers a powerful, decisive downward strike to a vital point, usually the neck (to decapitate her target). Often used as a coup de grace, or a mercy killing blow.

- Dirge: Karen holds her blade high, and waits for the perfect opening. Once she spots it, she dashes forward and slices horizontally with enough force to disembowel a human.

Fury (heavy-damaging attacks)

- Four Crescents: Karen executes four quick horizontal slashes in rapid succession. Think of the 4-hit long blade triangle combo, except without the forward lunge.

- Hell Scroll: Karen executes multiple spinning slashes at varying heights.

Divine Will (defensive maneuvers that, when positioned properly, also work as offensive moves)

- Blessed Mirror: Karen feints one or more attacks. Once her target initiates an attack of its own, she takes a step closer to it and deploys her shield. Karen times this just before the attack can hit her, causing her target to stagger backwards. (Reference to Mu-12's Distortion Drive "Yata no Kagami", literally "Mirror of Eight Branches", from BlazBlue)

- Feathered Arrows of Heaven: Karen shifts from sword mode to gun mode, leaps to the air and fires well-aimed S-Bomb or IOD V2 shots downward to her target. (Reference to Mu-12's special move of the same name, Arrow of Heaven/Ama no Habaya, also from BlazBlue)

Tier 2

Abyssal Blade (purely offensive)

- Legendary Lotus Guillotine:

Karen leaps into the air and holds her God Arc in reverse. Once she starts to descend, Karen spins to hit her target multiple times, before ending with a powerful overhead slash. (Reference to Katarina [Death Lotus] and Darius [Guillotine], from League of Legends)

Celestial Guardian (support offensive)

- Legendary Reverse-Edged Sword:

Karen uses the back of her God Arc blade to stun her targets. She still moves and attacks like she normally does; however since she is doing so with the back of her blade, it deals minimal damage and yet delivers the same effect as a stun grenade. (Reference to RurouniKenshin, the 'reverse-edged sword' itself should be enough of a hint)

Tier 3

Two Moons (revealed a little past one-thirds of the way through the storyline)

- Blue Moon Song: Karen uses the red shortsword made by Licca as a parrying weapon. Since her grip on the blue blade God Arc is one-handed, her attacks are a bit slower, but tend to have more force behind them.

- Red Moon Dance: Karen uses the red shortsword as the primary attacking side. Although it does not do any damage to the Aragami (since it's not lined with Oracle cells), she capitalizes on the faster attack time to stagger the target long enough to get one or two quick (free) attacks in.

Tier 4/Ougi (revealed mid-storyline)

Redemption: Three Gods' Benediction

- named after Shōkan, Karen copies Shōkan's and Yuu's movements and one of their attacks, then delivers one of her own before doing a charged Devour from the target Aragami's blind side.

Courage: Mighty River of Gods

- named after Yuu, Karen charges into close range and keeps on the defensive to allow her team or companion to attack freely. If solo, Karen goads her target to making an attack before blocking and pushing back.

Path of the Little River

- Karen allows herself five minutes to remove all restraints on herself and fight like a flowing river: always weaving and dodging and slashing, never stopping from attacking. This also means she does not block - at all.

In comparison, below is Shun's own take on Empty Sky Sword.

Tier 1

Stream: Shun's attacks are quick, chaining together easily. Think of the 4-hit long blade square combo, but faster. Unfortunately, his accuracy slightly suffers due to the increased speed.

Rapids: each of Shun's attacks gain accuracy and have considerable power and distance, but there is a noticeable gap in between each attack. Think of the 4-hit long blade triangle combo, but with a 1/10th second delay in between each strike.

Tier 2

Dancing Leaf: Shun attacks in mid-air, his blade and feet moving in sync and making him appear like a leaf dancing in the wind. Think of the 2-hit long blade square aerial combo.

Curved Moonbeam: Shun shifts his weight enough to do a full aerial 540-degree vertical spin slash in mid-air (think of the long blade triangle aerial attack, just extended - one full spin of the blade from 12 o'clock position and back, plus one half-spin from 12 o'clock to 6 o'clock position).

Shun's family branch has only one intermediate and one ougi-tier attack, however it is reputed to be the most difficult (complex) among all the Ogawa families. It has been seen in action only once, and never again after a live demonstration by Shun's great-grandfather.

In comparison, Karen's family has the most physically and mentally draining ougi-tier attack (Path of the Little River).


	9. Chapter 9

Wings of Deceit

"Something's up..."

"Up? What do you mean 'up'?" Yuu said to Kota in feigned innocence, barely hiding his nervousness as Kota cornered him in the Entrance. Yuu had just gotten back from a Special Mission, he only needed to find one more Black Wing for Dr. Sakaki to get done what he needs to. And Kota halting his progress was a waste of precious daylight.

"What are you doing after your missions lately? We're friends, aren't we?"

"Of course we are, Kota. I've just been gathering material for Dr. Sakaki. He's been very picky lately."

"What, again?! What is up with Doc and all these experiments lately? You better not be keeping any secrets from me!"

"I'm not," Yuu raised his hands, jokingly in surrender. "Doc has just been weird, you know?"

"Yeah, I know." Kota sighed in tired agreement by just the memories alone.

"Hey, maybe you can help me out." Yuu suggested as a positive. "I only need one more item for the Doc and then I'm done. Maybe you can help me find it. It'll make the job go by faster."

"Hmm... Sure, if it'll help you settle down a little, I'm in!"

"Thanks dude, you're awesome! Now if only we could get some other God Eaters to give us a hand." Yuu pondered a little until someone had walked up from the lower Entrance Floor. "Sakuya, perfect timing, think you can join us on a mission?"

"Sorry, Yuu, I already have a previous engagement with Karen. Maybe next time, okay?"

"Sure, no problem."

"Good luck, boys." Sakuya waved at them, before going for the elevator when the doors automatically opened. Alisa and Shōkan had just come out, giggling and snickering about something as they talked among themselves. Waving at Sakuya as she passed them by, going in as they were coming out. In a desperation to not be alone with Kota so as not to bring back up the previous topic again, and in order to avoid further questioning, Yuu ran to Alisa and cupped her hand in his.

"Alisa, just the sight I wanted to see. I need you."

"!" Alisa blushed like wild strawberries as she began to stutter at his declaration. "Y-y-you need me, Yuu?"

"Oooh!" Shōkan teased at her like a Studio Audience at a juicy scene.

"Yes, I need you... to help on a mission."

"Eh? Ah, oh, uh..." Alisa was slightly flattened at the misinformation. The bright blush on her face disappeared just as quickly as it came.

"I've been busy lately, and haven't had much time to hang out with my team. I was wondering if we can spend some time together on a mission."

"Oh, uh, sure. What kind of mission is it?"

"Ah, just a Tezcatlipoca in the City of Mercy. It seems to have an item the Doc wants."

"A Tezcatlipoca, sounds like good pay. Can I come too, Boss?" Shōkan asked excitedly with a raised hand.

"Sure, the more, the merrier." Yuu happily accepted her invitation with cheer, the more people there the better. "Let's get going then. I have an Afternoon calling my name."

Down on the Rookies' Floor, a knock had came on Karen's door, breaking her out of her tranquil state. Remaining in seizan, she called out to the person on the other side.

"It's open." Was all Karen felt she needed to say, granting her guest entrance.

The door shyly squeaked open to reveal Sakuya, peeking her head in through the cracked door.

"Hi, Karen." She smiled, holding up her Asian tea kettle, hot with herbal tea. "I was hoping I could take you up on that offer of meditating together. I brought tea."

"Hm, then you're just in time. I was just about to clear away the troubles of today from my mind. Have a seat." Karen offered, pulling out the extra mat from under her for Sakuya, and toss along with it the pillow from the couch.

"Aren't you going to use a pillow too?" Sakuya asked as she sat the kettle on the cup mat on Karen's coffee-table.

"No need, the minor discomfort is no concern for me when I reach a state of zen." Karen explained before turning back toward her window holo-screen.

She had placed up a small altar, similar to the one back at the old temple, on the window space. On a quilted cover stood a stand holding three swords. All the handles faced their left side, which looked to be on the right to the girls. The one on the lowest level was a Shinai, the string that tied the dry bamboo together seemed old and yet still held strong. On the second level of the stand was a Bokken, the wood around the blade area had been dented through use but by skill alone held no chippings. On the highest level was a heaved katana, her father's katana...

Behind the sword stand stood up three photos. Two were of photographs of men, one in his middle ages the other in his golden years. But the middle photo seemed to be an old picture of a statue of a Shinto god. In his right hand he held a sword, while in his left he held a lariat. Sculpted flames engulfed behind him as his face took on a wrathful expression.

"That's Fudō-Myōō, or Acala in some cultures, the immovable one or the wisdom king." Karen explained, all ready guessing what Sakuya was thinking by that confused look on her face. "Acala is said to be a powerful deity who protects 'All the Living' by burning away all impediments and defilements, thus aiding them towards enlightenment. He is an entity looked up to in most Shotokan dojos. It is said that he was based from the Hindu god, Candarasanam the violent-wrathful one."

"Oh... he doesn't seem very... pleasant."

"The sword he holds is something described as hōken, the treasure sword, or kongō-ken, the vajra sword. It is said to cut through all things, truths and corruptions. In the end, all that is judge to be right and wrong means nothing, it is but a figment of the temporary beliefs of man. That's why I keep a Vajra sword in the center of my altar." Karen explained, pointing toward the ritual object that looked like a mace with a ribbed spherical head, in front of her sword stand. The ritual vajra was much smaller than a vajra sword, a hand-held object with two heads, one on each end of the handle. "It is a weapon which is used as a ritual object to symbolize both properties of a diamond, indestructibility, and thunderbolt, irresistible force."

"Wow, imagine that..."

"What is it?"

"I just... I find it hard to believe that we named an Aragami after an object symbolizing indestructible wisdom."

"Hn, we name the Aragami after a lot of cultural deities and symbolism. It's almost blasphemy... more like an insult and disgrace to our cultures, really."

"Ah..." Sakuya nodded in awkward agreement before noticing the metal bowl on the side, in front of the sword stand. "Oh! Is that a Tokaido?"

"Yes, the after rings of the Universe, it's the original altar bell set I saved from the temple. How did you know?"

"I remember hearing its vibrating rings early in the morning when I use to live in the Tranquil Temple area. It always sounded so soothing to me, but left me in a daze each time." Sakuya giggled at the memory, making Karen cough out a chuckle as well, before she took notice of the other photos. "Who are those men?"

"They are my Shomen now." Karen explained, gesturing toward each photo as she spoke about them. "The photo of the younger man is my father, my Sensei. The photo of the older man is my grandfather, who taught my father. We use to have a photo of the temple's original Sensei, my great great grandfather, but that was loss during the Aragami attack..."

"Oh... I'm so sorry..."

"Don't be, it was only a material object. Nothing that could be taken with to the 'Other side'."

"Huh, well that's true."

"Shall we begin, Sakuya-dono?"

"Oh, yes, let's begin."

"Seiza!" Karen shouted as they both went silent on their mat, sitting in seizan with their backs straight and eyes closed.

Karen's eyes remained partially open as her legs remained two fists lengths apart. It was traditional in Kendo that all seizans were sat that way, regardless of gender. It was society that changed such traditions to fit the more modern socially acceptable sitting position for what was more of a lady-like manner, as Sakuya was displaying with her legs sitting together and closed. But Karen was taught in the way of tradition, so she would keep to her traditions.

Both ladies were breathing in through their nose and out with their mouths. In with the good Chi in the air, out with the bad Chi. Both properly sucking the air into their stomachs as spiritual nourishment and back out again through their mouths. Karen had cupped her left hand into her right hand in a bowl shape gesture, resting her wrists on her knees, as she caught the heaven's Chi into her hands.

From there, she let it all go. All thoughts, all memories, all grudges. The troubles of the world had been all silenced into nothing as she became one with everything around her. But she couldn't keep that state for long, a betraying thought would barge its way through, in the silence, echoing through the emptiness. She had tried going to her place of 'Inner Peace', like her father had taught her to do, but it wasn't enough. She couldn't shield herself from her wild thoughts like she use to, not after the day of that Aragami attack. She had a lot on her mind.

Having enough of this inner turmoil, she decided to end the meditation. "Yame."

Sakuya had slowly opened her eyes again and followed Karen's example as she placed her right hand flat down in front of her and then left, making a diamond shape with her thumbs and index finger.

"Shomen ni rei," Karen instructed as they both bowed with straight backs, touching their foreheads to their hands.

"Sensei ni rei," Karen called out as they bowed again toward the altar.

"Otagai ni rei." They both gave one last bow before getting up on their right foot and walked over to the coffee-table.

"Now let's drink before the tea gets cold." Sakuya suggested as they got into seizan at the coffee-table, ignoring the couch for a more cultural practice.

"You did me a favor, Sakuya-dono. Saves me the time of having to brew up a batch." Karen huffed in a chuckle, gesturing toward her Chadōgu set on her counter.

"Hm, perhaps we can do that another time." Sakuya suggested as she poured hers and Karen's tea into their cups.

"Arigatoo." Karen had taken a gentle sip from her cup. Holding her cup with both of her hands, one on top the other supporting the bottom, to feel the warmth of the tea. "Hmm, this is a good blend."

"I'm glad you like it. I made it from some Sencha I found growing in the City of Mercy."

"Really? I was more under the impression 'that' tea leaf would thrive better in the Sunken Grid area."

"Perhaps that is a miracle of the land, that life is returning to that dried earth."

"Hm, yes... I wish for that to be true. The wastelands outside these walls need to revive to the life it once was before the Aragami plagued them."

"Speaking of the wastelands, I hear you recently went on a mission out there with Shun. How did it go?"

"... Nothing note worthy happened." Although Karen's voice remained flat, she could not hide the momentary hard glint in her eyes before she closed them to take a sip of tea.

"Oh come now, surely it must have been fun fighting alongside family."

"I could give or take 'that' certain family. Working alongside Shun is nothing special to me..."

"Karen..."

"Your tea is getting cold, Sakuya-dono." Karen informed, taking another sip as she ended the topic.

"W-why yes... of course..." Karen seemed to have a sore spot for Shun, but Sakuya wouldn't push it to find out. She was a patient woman, she could wait...

*** City of Mercy ***

"Alright, let's go!" Kota cheered as they jumped off the Starting Point.

"Let's go," Shōkan agreed with him, running out into the open area, only to be greeted by blowing dust and howling winds. "Tst, where is this thing? It can't hide anywhere, it's a freak'n eyesore."

"We'll split up and look for the enemy." Yuu instructed. "Me and Alisa will look around the church, you two look down the back alleyway, got it?"

"Got it!" "I'll look for the enemy." Shōkan and Kota both complied as they ran off from the group.

"Let's search for the enemy." Alisa gestured with her head for Yuu to follow her.

"Right," Yuu nodded, giving one last look at the direction the other two went off in, slightly concerned for the rookie. But then he'd remember seeing her fight, she'll be fine, especially in Kota's hands. The guy had a knack for getting along with new faces, and working well with New-Types.

Roar!

"!"

"Looks like we'll be the one's needing the backup." Yuu commented as they turned the corner of the church to come face to face with the Tezcatlipoca.

"I'll cover you!" Alisa assured as she provided cover fire on the Tezcatlipoca's chest while Yuu set off a Convergent Flare.

Shōkan and Kota had just cautiously creeped over to the outer building down the alleyway before storming in to find the place empty.

"Dammit, it's not here." Shōkan hissed in annoyance.

"Where do you think it is?" Kota asked as he followed after Shōkan out of the building after she passed him.

"I don't know, it could be tanning for all I care. Or watching the sunset." Then the sound of a flare shooting off into the sky caught their ears. Smoking out as a pressing signal to the two of them. "Heh, looks like it's having fun with Alisa and Yuu."

"Come on, let's go!" Kota said, running off ahead.

"You got it, Chief!"

Yuu had rolled out of the way of the charging Tezcatlipoca after he had let off the flare. Only to dash in front of its chests to slash at its armor.

"Che, I hope the others get here soon. This guy can be a handful."

"(Giggle) Listen to yourself, you're starting to sound like Soma." Alisa laughed at the thought while sneaking in a Devouring bite on the side of the Tezcatlipoca.

"Am I? Huh? Well that can't be good, you guys would miss me too much." Yuu teased, earning a laugh from Alisa. Only to have to leap back as the Tezcatlipoca jumped into the air, both of them bringing up their shields as Divine Satellite attacks launched down from the sky. "Seriously, where the heck are those two?"

"Here I am!" Kota shouted, coming around the corner like the Calvary.

"We won't let you guys have all the fun!" Shōkan shouted with glee as she leaped up toward the Tezcatlipoca's head.

She had jumped in for an upward slice at the behemoth Aragami's small head, dodging all of its missiles, only to be slammed back onto the ground as the Tezcatlipoca charged forward. She was knocked down again, as soon as she got back up, when the Tezcatlipoca decided to jump back. Having enough of being slammed around like a rag-doll, Shōkan seethed. Gritting her teeth as she wiped away the escape saliva from the side of her lips.

"Damn you! I will chop your head off!" She roared at the Aragami, throwing a Stun Grenade directly at its face, blinding it with the grenade's bright light. "Now!"

"Alright!" Yuu's praise went to deaf ears with Shōkan as she went into a craze beserker, taking on an eat-shit-grin as she leaped for the head. In her fury she had actually taken her Buster Blade into one hand as she swung.

Changing into Gun-mode in midair, pushing herself away from the Tezcatlipoca as she fired. Each mortar, freezing its face with their blizzard shots. "I'll tear you apart!"

"Yikes... remind me not to get on her bad side." Kota jokingly commented to the others, getting a nervous laugh out of Yuu.

"Come on, let's finish it off." Alisa instructed to the boys, dash striking into the fray at the Tezcatlipoca's legs, to give Shōkan a hand.

Taking extensive damage, the Tezcatlipoca tried to make a run for it. But Shōken wouldn't let it, running at its pace, she kept slicing at its chests until she made it trip. "Nobody runs and makes it out alive!"

"!" Alisa gasped at Shōkan's disturbing use of words. Even toward the Aragami, Alisa found it concerning that Shōkan still carried on her sister's words even after she was out of the Militia.

With the Tezcatlipoca's chest wide open, it was easy for the three God Eaters with blades to cut into its soft pink flesh and destroy its outer armor.

"Should I go easier on you?" Yuu taunted.

"It's not enough." Shōkan commented aloud to herself before delivering a charged crush blow at the Tezcatlipoca. "Go to hell!"

"Ill take you out, no problem!" Kota taunted toward the Aragami as he fired at its crown.

Once on its feet again, the Tezcatlipoca got enraged. Thrashing around as it randomly fired missiles.

"(Chuckle) Down boy." Shōkan seductively chuckled at the raging Aragami as she placed down a Snare Trap right under its legs, stopping it in its tracks. "(Giggle) It's open..."

"Now!" Yuu changed int Gun-mode, firing at the Tezcatlipoca's vulnerable spot. Knocking it off its feet, finishing it up with a four hit strike. Yuu and Alisa, crossing blades as they strike at its head, Kota and Shōkan toward its chests as she raced with Kota's Oracle Bullets. "Ahh, it's over."

"Alrighty! We nailed it this time too!" Kota cheered with a fist pump.

"That was a breeze, wasn't it?" Alisa happily pointed out, wiping the sweat off her brow.

"Ahh, I feel better..." Shōkan sighed out in relief as her muscles began to relax.

"Well, it wasn't too bad, I got what I need." Yuu calmly cheered to himself as he pulled out a Black Wing he found near the dead Tezcatlipoca, lying by a salvaging area. "You all wiped?"

"Yes! This alone will be enough for 6400fc, I can't wait for the mission's pay!" Shōkan happily cheered with glee. "It's over right?"

"Don't let your guard down until the end." Alisa replied.

"Which is?"

"When we all get home." Yuu answered.

*** Returning to the Den ***

"Good job everyone, you all did me proud having my back once again." Yuu praised to them as they entered the Entrance.

"I'm gonna head to my room to watch some Burgurally. You coming, Yuu?"

"In a little bit, Kota. I gotta drop off these item's at Doc's lab."

"Alrighty, see you then. What about you ladies, you in?"

"Hmph, I-I'll tag along s-so Yuu doesn't have to be stuck with your enthusiastic banters alone."

"Heh, I'm starting to feel like a third wheel here." Kota teased at her, grinning from cheek to cheek as her face bean to turn red. "Should I turn the lights off so you can make your move?"

"W-wha?! Cease your idiotic banter at once, Kota!"

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline your offer, Kota." Shōkan replied to his previous offer. "I've got deals to do, money to make."

"Wha, money again?" Kota whined, slightly deflated that he wouldn't be able to hang out with the new member on the team. He honestly felt like he could relate to this new rookie better, since they were brought up from less privileged backgrounds and had a family to look out for. "What is it with you and making quick cash?"

"You know me," Shōkan shrugged with a smirk. "I've got bodies to take care of, people who rely on me. I gotta bring them home the goods since I'm not there. I've got a gift list to take care of."

"Heh, yup, I know how you feel!" Kota nodded knowingly with his arms crossed as eyes closed with a smirk. "I've gotta little sister to send lots of presents to once I go back home again."

"Aww, that's so sweet. What's her name."

"Nozomi. She's the cutest little sister ever!" Kota bragged with pride, puffing his chest out as he got into a hero pose.

"Hope? My niece has that name too. Although hers means a 'reasonable or a confident anticipation' hope, instead of a 'count on me' hope."

"Kitai?"

"Yup! She's adorable! Really smart for a four year old too."

"She sounds awesome, show me some pictures sometime."

"I can't, I didn't bring any."

"Really?" Kota said in sympathy before patting her shoulder. "Then I'll show you some of my family pics so you'll get all the 'hope' you need!"

"(Chuckle) That's sounds nice." Shōkan for the first time they had ever seen her put on a warm smile. "I'll hold you to that."

"..." The others watched as a genuinely warm smile came over her face. But was there more to it?

"Well, I gotta go. Maybe you can join us next time, Shōkan. Come on, Alisa, let's get started by setting up."

"Ugh, all right." Alisa tiredly complied as she followed behind Kota into the elevator. "I have to make sure your room is decent enough for people to sit in anyway."

"Bye-bye, guys." Shōkan waved off to them from behind as she went down the stairs to the lower Entrance level, not noticing that Yuu had not moved yet. His eyes were stilling following her from the corner of his vision. She had went down to the Merchant and started haggling.

"Yo, man, I've gotta a large order for you. Give me the works-"

But Yuu didn't stay to listen to all of it, still keeping his eye on her until the elevator had returned and he entered. The ride down to the Lab Floor was a quiet one as he pondered a nagging feeling in his gut. Something felt off about the rookie, she was up to something.

She kept her secrets, while in a way that hid them behind a wall of open truth. This girl was good, that much was for sure. But was she on their side, or not? However, he wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. Still... he'd keep an eye on her, just for a little while.

"Hey! I didn't expect you to bring them all at once!" Dr. Sakaki praised to Yuu as he saw the Black Wings in his hands. Before Yuu knew it, he had already waked into Dr. Sakaki's lab.

"?!" He must've been out of it, he'd never let his mind stray that far usually. "Uh, yeah. Here, Doc."

"Thanks." Dr. Sakaki grinned as he took the items from the disgruntled First Unit Leader. "Yeah, this should be enough. It'll take a while for the analysis though, I hope it can prove that he's still alright..."

"He 'IS' still alright." Yuu seethed through his teeth.

"Hm?... Oh, sorry for the bad choice of words. When the analysis progresses a little more... I'll issue a Search Mission for Lindow! It looks like he should still be human!

*** Author's Notes ***

lariat= noose

A phrase of respect before leaving a dojo, or a lesson:

Shomen ni rei- bow to the people before you (Ancestors)

Sensei ni rei- bow to your teacher

Otagai ni rei- bow to each other (Peers)

Chadōgu= traditional Japanese tea ceremony equipment. Containing:

Chakin- a small rectangular white linen or hemp cloth to mainly wipe the tea bowl

Tea bowl (Chawan)- the name explains itself, but different styles cater to thick or thin tea.

Tea caddy (Natsume)- The small lidded container in which the powered tea is placed for use in the tea-making procedure

Tea scoop (Chashaku)- Carved from a single piece of bamboo, they can also be made of ivory or wood. They are used to scoop tea from the tea caddy into the tea bowl.

Tea whisk (Chasen)- used to mix the powered tea with the hot water. They are carved from a single piece of bamboo and come in various types. Tea whisk quickly become worn and damaged with use, so are the most replaced piece of the Chakin.

Arigatoo= thank you

Sencha= tea leaf


	10. Chapter 10

The Fragile Hope

It was early morning when Tsubaki had all of the 1st through 3rd Unit gather in the Entrance. They all mumbled to themselves, wondering why Tsubaki had summoned all three groups. She had been in a good mood for these past couple of days, what could they have done to tick her off?

Karen and Shōkan remained silent as they leaned on the railing guards on the left side of the upper Entrance, away from the group. Karen remained silent to patiently wait for the answer to reveal itself, Shōkan mostly stayed quiet because she was annoyed that she was woken up so early in the morning. If there was no fire outside, the news could wait.

"We have been testing foreign samples found out in the wastelands recently. DNA results indicate it's Lindow Amamiya. As of 1200 hours, the search is on again."

"!" The groups had burst into excited gasp. Karen was even surprised that Shun was relieved at the news of a previously announced KIA comrade was still alive. Shun had never cared about anyone other than himself. To see him happy over the return of a comrade made her feel a foreign spark toward him she hadn't felt before, not in a long time. Could this be... the feeling of hope?

"Although alive the infection may have spread. Be careful when coming into contact with him..." Tsubaki continued with the briefing, catching the new rookies off guard as the formally christened 'Ice Queen' softened up into a warm joy. Who could this Lindow be to her to change her from a Stone Guardian to a Motherly Figure? "My brother, the lost child... I'm counting on you all!"

"!" So he was her brother, Shōkan couldn't help but widen her eyes at the news. Now she understood; of course Tsubaki would behave differently toward this missing Gods Eater. To say she was worried would be an understatement. It must've been hellishly hard for her, having to believe he was dead for such a long time, unable to go out and look for him for herself. Shōkan knew that she would do anything and everything she could if the same happened to her little brother.

Such is the way of the 'Big sister'.

Shōkan felt happy for Tsubaki. She must have been so relieved that her brother is still alive somewhere out there. She would just have to rely on the God Eaters to find her lost brother. As a big sister too, Shōkan swore to herself that she wouldn't let Tsubaki down.

"Lindow... he's alive..." Sakuya happily sighed, filled with so much relief and joy at the news that she almost cried. While Shōkan was zoned out of it, the others had made their way down a level toward the Mission Desk, leaving Shōkan and Karen all alone to themselves.

"Sakuya. Alisa happily sighed with her.

"Right... lets bring him back ASAP." Soma instructed to Yuu, who nodded in agreement.

"Yes... Let's bring him back without fail. Without fail!" Alisa agreed as well with determination.

"Alright! Now that that's settled let's go for it, Leader!" Kota fist pumped to Yuu, getting the others all worked up.

"The 1st Unit will remain on combat duty." Hibari informed, crashing the party. "2nd and 3rd Unit will focus on the search."

"Huh, but why?"

"Tsubaki says that the 1st Unit is needed to repel the Aragami. And must not leave the Den."

"I can understand your point of view. But..." Alisa tried to argue, but couldn't come up with a good counter reason.

"Don't worry! Just leave the search for Lindow to us!" Tatsumi insisted to the 1st Unit. "We'll find him in no time."

"Tatsumi..."

"We'll let you know as soon as we find him! Right, Gina?" The strawberry blonde known as Kanon cutely assured.

"Yes... We will. You're not the only ones who want Lindow to come back you know." Gina informed, catching Karen's interest on how much everyone wanted this Lindow person back, even Gina. He must have been a great man.

"And hey, we also got two Rookies as well..." Brendan bragged in reassurance. "We got the man power to do the job, right?"

"Right!" Annette and Frederico nervously agreed at the same time, flustered for suddenly being put in the spotlight.

"Um," Frederico got embarrassed as he turned to his former trainer, Yuu, for advice. "Can you show us the Right time to disengage, so you can switch perspectives?"

"Oh, me too!" Annette raised her hand, getting brave from Frederico's first move. Sakuya began to zone out for a second as she watched the group, not even catching the words that Yuu was saying.

"(Chuckle) Alright, you two." Yuu lightly laughed, rubbing the back of his head. He could remember when he was the one asking Lindow the questions, now things had changed. Time sure is a funny thing. "Well, you just gotta get a feel for it. Usually around the time of an opening or after dodging an attack, you'll know once it happens."

"Yes... Sure." Sakuya finally spoke, stepping forward as she finally came to terms that she would have to rely on the others to bring her loved one home. "This might seem like an odd thing to say, but... Help us out everyone."

The legendary 1st Unit, humbling themselves to seek the help of others instead of the other way around. How the others didn't think they would live to see the sight.

"Roger! Good luck to you too, 1st Unit." Tatsumi complied, walking up to Yuu to tap his shoulder. "If it comes to it, we'll back you up anytime."

"Thanks, man." Yuu nodded his head as the two of them shared a 'Bro Moment'.

"Alright! Hey, Hibari..." Tatsumi then walked over to Hibari, leaning over her desk as he slyly asked. "When I bring Lindow back safely, have dinner with me."

"Yes... um... Well... Yes. It's not out of the question, please get the job done." Hibari replied fluttered, trying her best to keep a professional level-head. But Tatsumi didn't hear a rejection in there.

"Huh?" He didn't even know what he'd just heard. Making the others laugh at his moments stomp.

Yuu laughed along with the others, looking around until he'd notice that Ren had left. He was there for the announcement, Yuu began to wonder when the kid had the chance to slip away without anyone even noticing. Leaving the merry group as well, Yuu headed for the elevator. Going to the one place he knew Ren was most likely at. Passing the other two rookies on his team without even noticing them as they watched him head into the elevator.

Just has Yuu expected, Ren was there on the Lab Floor. Finishing off a can of 'First Love Juice' by the snack machines as he was leaning on one of them. But why did he wander off from the others like that?

"Ren? You feeling okay?"

"Lindow... was certainly well-loved by his peers." Ren commented as his looked like they were far away from the present.

"He's a likeable guy, what can I say." Yuu shrugged off in good humor.

"Right, even though he was a knucklehead who couldn't count." Ren teased along with Yuu. "Oh! Haha, come to think of it, he did it when you first fought that Ogretail, right?"

"?"

"Yeah, it was probably his way of breaking the tension. He did a pretty good job too..." Leaning off of his spot on the machine, he continued on. "And look at you, a fine leader, guiding the new God Eaters; well-liked by all... Which is precisely why I need to tell you this..."

.xxxxx.

"Do you wish you could join in?" Shōkan asked, breaking the silence between the two of them.

"Do you?" Karen countered.

"I don't even know the guy. But I must admit, I am a little jealous of being left out. They all seem so close, it must be nice. I was never alone much as a kid, loneliness is a foreign feeling to me."

"I'm use to being alone."

"Seriosly? No one can get use to that. We're humans, we crave some form of companionship. So in some way, you were never alone, not truly."

"Hmph, perhaps you're right." Karen smirked to herself. "I always had my memories, and my letters."

"You had cousins in the area, so close by, why didn't you go to them?"

"I could take care of myself. I had strong legs, I didn't need to lean on anyone for help."

"Heh, my, such a strong will."

"And an even stronger body." Karen smirked in good humor.

"At least you're confident." Shōkan and Karen gently chuckled to themselves, before calming down. "It would seem that our leader ditched the band of merry men."

"Perhaps he is unwell, we should go check on him."

"Fine, not live have anything better to do."

The girls had walked off into the elevator, unnoticed by the others on the lower floor. They had thought that if he was feeling sick then he might be getting some medicine from the Sick Bay, so they checked there first. What they saw had caught them off guard.

"Shut Up!" Yuu shouted at no one, slamming his palms onto the Soda Machine.

Yuu, their calm not-a-care-in-world Leader, had just shouted in anger for the first time.

An empty can of 'First Love Juice' fell on the floor as he continued to breath heavily, seemingly in rage.

"!" They had no idea what they had walked into, but it left the air tense. What could have happened to make their leader turn a 180 from his happy grin not even 5 minutes ago?

For a moment, everything seemed to suddenly move so fast. One moment Yuu is like this, but then in another after they blinked, he had taken a step back from the Soda Machine, clinching his fists with his head hung low as he gritted his teeth. The can that was on the floor, now miraculously wound up on top of the trash bin. They had no idea he could move so fast, or that he moved at all.

Karen hesitantly broke the tense silence. "... Leader?"

"You feel'n okay, boss?" Shōkan followed suit.

"I'm fine." Yuu gritted out, pushing passed the two of them as he took the elevator behind them, slightly jousting them with his shoulder.

"Tch, Jāku."

"You said it, Karen." Shōkan agreed as the both of them stared where their former leader once was. Paying no mind to the sound of the door to the Sick Bay closing, just as they didn't even notice the door opening on its own as Yuu had passed them.

*** Author's Notes ***

Jāku = jerk


	11. Chapter 11

The Calm Before the Storm

The next day had come around, and Yuu had gotten time to cool down. Looking back on his actions yesterday, he realized that he was being a major jerk. What Ren said the other day was perfectly reasonable, and was simply the truth. There was no way Lindow was just the same as he was when they last saw him if he was dropping off feathers. Some things were changing about him, for better or worse depended on how fast they could bring him back. Ren was making sure that he understood this, so that if things went wrong... he wouldn't be so crushed.

But he was so happy that they finally had proof that Lindow was still alive, he didn't want anything to bring him down. And the others... he hadn't seen them in such a good mood in a while, he couldn't bare to take that away from them now.

Still... he owed Ren an apology, and he was man enough to own up to his wrongs. So with a heavy step, he awkwardly made his way into the Sick Bay. Ren was moving around, checking the conditions of the equipment when he heard Yuu come in.

"Oh, hey..." Ren awkwardly greeted him, nervous about how this visit would play out.

"Hey, man." Yuu greeted back, looking all over the room, rubbing a hand through the hair on the back of his head as he nervously sucked up the courage to say what needed to be said. "Listen, I'm sorry about yesterday... I was... just so excited that Lindow was finally coming home that the thought of us having to... for me to have to... I just wanna let you know that I'm sorry. I over reacted."

"I'm really sorry about earlier too..." Ren apologized as well for his part. "The matter of life and death in humans isn't easy, I know."

"Heh, yeah... it kinda sucks."

"But the moment of judgement is right in front of you. You'll have to decide, very soon."

"Ugh, not now, okay Ren?" Yuu tiredly sighed out, running his hand down his face in mental exhaustion. "I need time to think this through..."

"Please, remember. This is reality. You can't avoid it."

"(Sigh) Right." Yuu shook the exhaustion out of his head before putting his hands in his pants' pockets. "It was good seeing you this morning, Ren. I'll catch you later for a mission, sometime."

"Hn, thanks for visiting." Ren waved to him as Yuu walked out.

Stopping by the soda machine to get a 'First Love Juice' as he contemplated what course of action would he need to take next. Yuu mindless walked around while his mind waged war with itself. What course of action could be taken where he could save everyone, one where everyone could be happy?

But he had to face the truth; there was a high chance that he wouldn't be able to make everyone happy. Lindow was going through the stages of Aragami Infection as time kept on ticking. His Bias Factor supply was cut off due to that fight with a Dyaus Pita. His armlet was bitten off, the proof of that was still in Sakuya's room. He wasn't getting any new supply of Bias Factor, meaning that his Oracle Cells were most likely rapidly mutating. If it spreads to more than just his arm, he'll lose his humanity.

And by then no normal God Arc could take him down. Only Lindow's own God Arc could finish off the suffering lost Gods Eater. Which means... that only Yuu would be capable of doing the job.

But he did not want it to come to that. He would never be able to live with himself if he had to do that to his old mentor. And his team... what would they think? How would they look upon him when they see Lindow's blood on his hands?

What about Sakuya? She was devastated when they had to leave Lindow behind; worked herself tirelessly trying to find him and bring him back; then, crushed when Lindow was declared MIA. It took her weeks to finally pull herself together. And the news that he was still alive out there had lifted her up in ways he hadn't seen since Lindow was in the Den. If he took that away from her now, it could kill her.

For that matter, could he even do it? Ren had pointed out a valid scenario. If he was lucky enough to bump into Lindow out there on the field, he would be forced with two possible scenarios: finding Lindow in a bad but still curable state, or finding him already in a Aragami Transformation state. If the latter option had come into play, could he do it? Could he kill the Aragami Lindow had become?

Every time he asked himself that question, he could only come up to one answer...

No.

'Dammit, Lindow. Leaving us all behind, so I would have to clean up your own mess while you chose to go off and play the hero.' Yuu thought to himself. 'The world already makes a lot of selfish and foolish choices, you did not have to add on to it.'

"Lame! Why can't the First Unit go out on the search? He's a member of the First Unit, we should do the search! Right, Leader?"

"?!" Yuu snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of Soma's voice breaking through his fogged mind. Somehow he had found his way up to the Entrance Floor, sat by his team and friends in the lounge area as Alisa waved him over. He didn't even hear her talking to him, he just subconsciously saw her lips moving.

But as he came back to reality, he saw that he had made his way to sit beside Alisa on the couch. He stayed on the edge where Shun was leaning his arm on the back of the couch. Karen sat in the middle of the three sided couch, working on a can of 'First Love Juice' of her own while Soma sat on the side across from Yuu and Alisa. Shōkan sat-more like lied down- on Soma's side where the middle and third side met. Kicking her feet up on the back of the couch as she lied down on the cushion, taking up at least two sitting areas as she read her book without care.

"Leader, are you alright?" Alisa asked in concern of his dazed state, he had a said look in his eyes that stared off as if he was at a far off place.

"Y-yeah... I'm fine." He pathetically replied to Alisa, resting his arms on his knees as he looked down at the 'First Love Juice' can in his hand.

"You don't look find to me." Alisa huffed before softening up again. "Come on, where's the grin that you always carry around? Things can't be so bad, cheer up, okay?"

"!" Yuu's eyes widened in a panic as he noticed her hand reaching to grab his right hand in reassuring comfort through the corner of his eyes. But he couldn't react in time as her hand made contact with his, skin to skin.

"Oh..." Alisa's eyes began to zone out as what Yuu feared would happen was happening. "Could this be? Resonance... Lindow?!"

"!" Yuu tried to push her out as best as he could, without hurting her mind. At least, trying to keep her out of the things that the team wasn't ready to know. But it was hard, extraneous really, to block her out while acting like 'nothing was happening' in front of the others.

"Oh, it's ending..." Alisa tiredly strained to keep the Resonance going, but it was cut off beyond her reach. Allowing Yuu to pull his hand out of hers, she looked up to him in question. "Was that the Resonance?"

"What are you talking about?" He bluffed, if he made it seem like he doubted that maybe he could make her doubt what she saw as well. It was a shot in the dark, but it was all he had at the moment.

"Hm, maybe it was just my imagination... I think I saw Lindow, you, and... There was someone else. It was faint but..."

"If it was a real Resonance then you should file a Sexual Harassment Suit against Alisa, Yuu. I've got my report statement ready if you need a witness." Shōkan joked around without taking her eyes off the spot in her book. Yuu didn't know if she said that intentionally to have his back because she could hear the nervousness in his voice, or if she was just trying to start chaos. Either way, she saved him.

"Wha-What?! No! It wasn't- I couldn't control it that time, it just happened!" Alisa frantically stuttered in her defense.

"Riiiiggght, and I just so happen to like eating Flan because I can't control it. Go figure." Shōkan teased on, grinning from her book as she enjoyed getting a reaction out of Alisa.

"Heh, with how godawful sweet those things are, I'm surprised you're not fat." Soma mocked back at Shōkan.

"Heh, fat's too scared to stick with me."

"That was lame."

"It stopped you in its tracks, didn't it, Soma-san." Karen shot back at him, stepping up to the plate.

"!"

"Ohh! Nice burn, Karen!" Shōkan praised at Karen for her surprising comeback out of nowhere. She didn't think the girl had it in her to make a 'burn'. It would seem that she was happily wrong.

"These rambles are quite pointless, I simply wished to put an end to them." Karen replied, taking the slight victory from Shōkan's face at the thought of getting Karen to loosen up.

"Oh, there's my Samurai." Shōkan groaned out a little.

"Hmph," Karen smirked at getting Shōkan to deflate a little, but then she turned her attention back on to her slightly down-in-the-dumps leader. "You mustn't be distressed by the fact that you cannot go look for your mentor yourself. Find peace in the fact that we are taking care of the Aragami so he doesn't have to deal with them while he's out there. You must trust in your peers' power to bring him back."

"Right!" Shun jumped in, much to Karen's annoyance that he was interrupting her, even though he was agreeing in with her. He began to pat Yuu's back, just as hard as he did with her a while back. Perhaps he lacked the control over the strength he put into his actions. "Hey, hey, don't look so depressed! I'm sure I'm more than enough to find Lindow!"

"!" Was he... was he trying to comfort Yuu? Karen couldn't believe it.

"I'll find him real quick! Make sure there's a party ready for us when we get back!"

"!" Yuu couldn't help but smirk at Shun's words. Shun was right, he could depend upon Shun and the others to get the job done. He would... "Heh, sure. I'll even make sure to stock up with beer instead of 'First Love Juice'."

"Oh thank God!" Shun sighed out in relief, making the others laugh as he caught himself. "Uh, I mean- no offense."

"..." Karen had never seen this side of Shun before. Was he... actually trying to be sociable?

"I have mission orders to defeat an Amaterasu." Tsubaki had come up the stairs from the lower level, interrupting Karen's thought as she announced an immediate mission for the First Unit. "Sorry, but I need the First Unit to handle this as priority. Attacks with guns barely work on Amaterasu. Therefore, it is expected that this will be melee combat."

"Aw man, this late at night. (Sigh) I guess there's no rest for the wicked." Yuu sighed as he got up on his feet. "Alright, Tsubaki, we'll handle this."

"Don't let your mind wonder and get stomped on by the giant. Give this mission your full attention!"

"You got it, ma'am." Yuu assured to Tsubaki, giving her a thumbs up.

"Mind if I join you on this mission?" Karen requested. "I'd like to see the Aragami that would dare take the name of my ancient culture's main goddess."

"Hn, sure. Anything to make-up for how rude I was to you and Shōkan the other day. Sorry about that by the way, you two, I never meant to be so cold." Yuu nervously apologized in embarrassment for his behavior.

"You only pushed by us, it's not the end of the world. You were just having an off day, but I appreciate the apology and the sincere gesture." Karen replied, dusting off her shoulders as she got up from her seat before giving Yuu a slight bow in gratitude.

"Hey, if you're doing favors as apologies, mind if I sit this one out?" Shōkan asked. "I just got to a good part in my book."

"If that's what you want, fine." Yuu answered before turning to look at Mr. Sunshine sitting close to her. "Soma, keep her company while we're gone."

"Wha? Why can't I come along?" Soma grunted as he crossed in arms in frustration.

"You're so cute when you pout." Shōkan teased at him without looking from her book.

"Shut up." Soma gruffed.

"I want to come too!" Alisa raised her and in a volunteering request.

"Done!" Yuu clapped his hands and pointed at her as if sealing the deal. "Now I already planned for another guy to tag along with us. So let's get going, ladies. Take care you two."

"Hmph, fine." "Yeah, whatever." Soma and Shōkan replied to their leaving leader and his team at the same time.

"Don't get squashed out there, Karen." Shun waved her off, earning a hiss from his cousin.

"Hmph," She huffed at him as the Mission Elevator doors closed.

"Right..." Shun sighed out at her response, leaving the other two alone. "I'm gonna see if Karel and Gina want to go out and search again."

As he walked off, he left Soma and Shōkan alone in their silence that was starting to build up. Soma enjoyed moments of quiet like this, but not this time. This silence was stifling, he was not use to the new rookie being quiet for so long. And he certainly didn't like being ignored. So breaking the silence that built between them, he decided to make the first move.

"Hmph, so... what are you reading?"

"Nothing I think you'll find interesting." Shōkan answered, looking at him from the corner of her eyes before going back to her book.

"Hn, try me." Soma shrugged, reaching over to her to grab the book from her hands. Marking her page between his fingers.

"Hey!" Shōkan pouted as her book was suddenly taken from her.

"Creation of the World- Norse Mythology?" Soma read the title of the book aloud with a quirked eyebrow.

"It's just a fascination of mine." Shōkan embarrassingly admitted as she sat up straight on the couch to properly face him. "I always had an interest in the mythologies of the world. They all seem so intriguing, and yet hold certain similarities with each other."

"I see... and is this your latest cultural study so far?"

"No, it's one of my favorites." Shōkan began to get excited as Soma seemed to be truly interested in this topic. "I always come back to Norse Mythology everyone once in a while. Their deities don't seem to be as much of dicks as the Greek Mythology. Their stories were so charming."

"Heh, but their people could've been more or less charming if you ask me." Soma commented, looking back in his mind for the history lessons he once learned.

"Huh, well, that's true. But the same could possibly be argue with all the people of religions and mythologies." Shōkan countered back. "I just find their take on the creation of the world as magical, ever since I was little."

"Really? Care to explain why?" Soma requested, resting his elbow on the back of the couch so he could rest his fist on his cheek. Smirking as the chance of digging deeper into the rookie's character was given to him. "Perhaps you can convince me to agree with you."

"Oh, I don't know. It might take too long." Shōkan nervously replied, blushing in embarrassment as she rubbed the back of her neck with her hand.

"We've got time. I've got nothing better to do. And from the look on your face, you don't need the book to be able to tell me the whole story, Ms. Bookworm." Soma teased, grinning as he caught her in her tracks.

"Well... Fine." Shōkan sighed in compliance as she began the story. "In the beginning, there was a chasm, Ginnugagap, bounded on either side by fire, from the world known as Muspelheim, and ice, from the world known as Niflheim. When fire and ice met, they combined to form the giant, Ymir, and the cow, Audhumbla, who nourished Ymir.

"The cow survived by licking the salty ice blocks. From her licking emerged, Bur, the grandfather of the Aesir."

"Who are they?" Soma asked, interrupting her story.

"Aesir were a group of gods, lead by Odin, who lived in the city of Aesir called Asgard. It's the highest of the three Upper level of the nine worlds divided among three levels."

"Right... continue."

"(Sigh) Ymir, father of the frost giants, employed equally unusual procreative techniques. He sweated a male and a female from under his left arm."

"That sounds disgusting and unbelievable." Soma interrupted again. "I mean, if he created the frost giants isn't it a little bit of an oxymoron to create frost people by sweat?"

"No more interrupting!"

"What? I'm just say'n. It's more believable if he created them from his tears or something."

"(Sigh) Do you want to hear the rest of the story, or not?"

"Sorry."

"Anyway, Odin, the son of Bur's son, Borr, killed Ymir. The blood pouring out of the giant's body killed all the frost giants Ymir created, except Bergelmir."

"What happened to Bergelmir?"

"Hmmh." Shōkan had let out a puff of air from her nose in frustration.

"Sorry. I'm just curious."

"Ugh, I guess what I said before wasn't true. Bergelmir 'and his wife', the only survivors of the flood of blood on, went on to bring back the ice giants."

"Huh, I guess that would make sense."

"Now from Ymir's body, Odin created the world. Ymir's blood was the sea; his flesh, the earth; his skull, the sky; his bones, the mountains; his hair, the trees. The new Ymir-world was Midgard, the highest of the four worlds in the middle level, this is the world where man lives.

"Ymir's eyebrow was used to fence in the area where mankind would live. Around Midgard was an ocean where a serpent named Jormungand lived. He was big enough to form a ring around Midgard by putting his tail in his mouth."

"Why would he do that?"

"I don't know, but when he lets go of his tail the world is suppose to end. He's an example of an Ouroboros, an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail that appears in multiple religion, for good or mostly bad eternal return; always constantly re-creating itself as it gluttonously devours itself. He was one of the children of Loki and the ice giantess, Angrboda. They had three children: the wolf Fenrir, the sea serpent Jormungand, and Hel."

"Who's Hel?"

"The daughter of Loki who presides over a realm of the same name. It is said that Odin appointed her as ruler of this realm, located in Niflheim, where she receives a portion of the dead. To 'go to Hel' is to die."

"Ha! I get it." Soma replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes at the pun.

"Anyway, back to the original story." Shōkan said, bringing him back. " From Ymir's body grew an ash tree named Yggdrasil."

"I heard about this tree before. But what's the big deal about it?"

"..." Without saying a word, Shōkan took her book back from Soma's hand with three of her fingers. Going to the page she was once on and began to read. "Whose branches have covered the world and supported the universe. Ygdrasil had tree roots going to each of the 3 levels of the world. Three springs supplied it with water. One root went into Asgard, the home of the gods, another went into the land of the giants, Jotunheim, and the third went to the primeval world of ice, darkness, and the dead, known as Niflheim. In Jotunheim's spring, Mimir, lay wisdom. In Niflheim, the spring nourished the adder Nidhogge, darkness, who gnawed at the roots of Ygdrasil."

"..."

"Ygdrasil is the tree of life." Shōkan explained, closing her book. "From it's roots, birthed the world. And from its branches, covered life."

"Heh, I still see nothing fascinating about this mythology."

"You should, at least a little." Shōkan insisted as she sat her knees on the couch as she sat on her legs. "I mean, even Fenrir has a base to Norse Mythology. The place you work for is named after it's great wolf, and even Fenrir's Terminal database is named after its goddess of fate, Norns."

"Norns?"

"There are three of them: Urdur of the past, Verdandi of the present, and Skuld of the future. They all care for the spring by the root of Ygdrasil in Asgard."

"Huh. I still don't see why you're fascinated by this tree so much."

"..." Shōkan got quiet, looking down as she began to blush in embarrassment. "I... I always wanted to be a tree, ever since I was little."

"..." Soma's shoulders began to shake

"!" Shōkan's cheeks turned redder in annoyance, her head shooting back up as Soma began to laugh. "Don't laugh!"

"I can't help it, it's funny." His chuckles began to die down. He hadn't laughed like this before around others, if Kota was there to see him now he would say that the sky was falling. "(Chuckle) You're weird."

"(Giggle) You're weird, Soma." She began to laugh a little too, Soma's laughter was contagious.

"Heh, we're both weird, kid."

"Hm, weird is good I guess." Shōkan smirked back at Soma, unable to help herself.

*** Meanwhile at Aegis Island ***

"Hmph, that Aragami dare call itself Amaterasu." Karen huffed as she swiped the blood from her blade, letting the colossal Aragami fall behind her to its death. "It would even have the gull to show itself while Tsukuyomi is in the sky."

"Well, at least we got the job done." Yuu huffed, catching his breath as he wiped the sweat off his brow. "I almost thought the Aragami was going to trample us."

"Yuu, I thought you said we would have a second guy with us?" Alisa questioned, a fourth guy would have come in hand a lot during the fight. Did the guy never show up?

"Wah? He's been here the whole time, providing cover fire while shooting us Recovery Bullets and Team-bullets when we needed them. Didn't you feel them?"

"..." Alisa and Karen remained quiet at his answer. It was true, they did get random Recovery Bullets when they got hit too many time by the Aragami's colossal tendrils. And they even got Team-bullets that appeared out of nowhere.

Was Frederico here? That's the only person Karen could think it was. He was the only male New-Type in the Den, other then Yuu, which would explain the Team-bullets and the 'he' Yuu was talking about. Frederico had been training with the 3rd Unit, but she didn't know any members from the Unit that specialized in Recovery Bullets; perhaps he was dabbling in it on his own. He must have been taken sniper shots from afar to keep a safe distance from the Aragami. But... why hasn't he shown himself yet? He could not have gone home without making sure his team got back okay. That was just... bad form.

"Anyway, let's head back now. I'm beat, and there's a bed waiting for me back at the Den." Yuu instructed, walking off to the Starting Point with the girls close beside him.

"Right, I am a little tired myself." Alisa agreed with him.

"(Yawn) Sleepy." Karen stifled off a yawn as she followed her team. She may have been tired, but... she could have swore she heard the laughter of a young boy.

*** The Next Day ***

"Hey, guys! This is amazing... I came up with the greatest idea!" Kota came running up to the Entrance to announce to his team, sitting at the lounge area as they hung out after a long day of missions along with the other members of the 2nd and 3rd Unit.

"What?" Soma groaned out, already knowing that this was going to be ridiculous. Things always got ridiculous when Kota got an idea. But Soma would hear him out anyway, along with the others.

"Glad to see you're interested! Alright, this is an artistic method of ending the long awaited search for Lindow." Kota built up, trying to butter the others into his strategy. He practically gestured his hands in the air as if he was rolling out a banner. "I call it, the 'Lovely, Lindow-Luring LINEUP!"

"..." Everyone along the couch remained silent as an awkward sweat drop appeared on their heads.

"What?" Was all Soma needed to say to sum up what the others were thinking. He even added a quirked eyebrow for good measure.

"Hear me out. You know how Lindow loves girls?"

"Who doesn't love girls?" Shōkan pointed out sarcastically.

"Gays." Karen countered.

"They love girls, they're just not attracted to them."

"Anyway," Kota said with a cough, bringing everyone back to him. "So I thought if we walked around with a bunch of girls, he'd have to come out of hiding!"

"Sounds to me that this Lindow was a heart breaker." Karen commented, ultimately declining being apart of Kota's plan. "I rather not use my body to lure out a guy like that."

"Yeah, you have to take me out to dinner and tell me I'm pretty before you'll ever get me to try and lure a man I don't know out of hiding with my looks." Shōkan huffed sarcastically in refusal.

"I-I don't know much about Lindow, so I'm not sure if I should really join in or not..." Annette nervously declined as well, getting the courage to refuse Kota as well after seeing Karen do it.

"Wha? I'm running out of ladies." Kota pouted as he already got two rejections from his plan. Turning to two girls on his team he could count on, he put on his biggest smile and puppy dog eyes as he tried to coax them into it. "Come on, Sakuya, Alisa, I know you ladies could lure out Lindow in a heartbeat, what do ya say?"

"I can't believe you asked me to join you, with a huge smile on your face." Alisa replied in appall. "That sounds like the stupidest plan! Why would anyone think that would work?"

"Hehe, the Lovely-Luring Lineup, right? It's so Kota, I can't say I hate it." Sakuya lightly laughed out the the whole ordeal. "But now that I realized it... I guess that really is the image everyone has of Lindow (sigh)..."

"Aw man, you girls are out too?" Kota pouted, deflating a little as he couldn't get any of the girls in his circle of friends to go along with his plan. "Isn't there anyone who wants to go on this mission with me?!"

"I-I'll go."

"?!" They all turned to the shy voice of the strawberry blonde medic who cutely had her hand bashfully raised from her seat on the couch.

"Kanon? Why?" Alisa almost couldn't believe that Kanon was giving in to this ridiculous plan.

"... When I heard Lindow was alive, I tried my best to be as much help as I can for his search. But..." Kanon honestly confessed, wiggling around in nervousness as she shyly spoke with a blush. "I only seem to cause everyone trouble... since I was invited to the plan, I'll do my best to make it a success!"

"That's the spirit, Kanon! You're awesome!" Kota praised to her with a thumbs up before turning to Karen and Shōkan for one last try. "Is there anyway you girls would like to join in?"

"No." "Ha haha, yeaahhh, no." Both Karen and Shōkan declined at the same time.

"Come on, girls. I mean, you're pretty good looking yourselves! So please? Cooperate with us! Join the cause!" Karen payed no mind to Kota's words, but Shōkan on the other hand got offended as she shot up from her seat.

"What?! What do you mean 'pretty good looking'?! Are you calling us B-rates?!"

"!" Kota began to panic, he didn't mean to upset them. He just wanted to butter them up, looks like he would have to work on his smooth talk with the ladies later on before it gets him slapped. Taking a step back, he outstretched his arms as he waved his hands in a 'no' gesture. "N-no, I didn't mean it like that! I was just-"

"Pretty good looking is what you call boys! _You're_ pretty good looking!" Shōkan stated, walking over to Kota to poke him in his chest before pointing her thumb back at herself and Karen. "We're _hot_! And I'll prove it to you on that battlefield. Come on, I'll join you on this mission."

"R-really, that's great." Kota nervously cheered, relieved that he had just avoided a storm.

"I guess I'll come along too." Came the smooth voice of Gina as she got up to join the other two girls.

"Gina-neesan you can't be serious." Karen raised an eyebrow at her older cousin in disbelief.

"When stupidity goes this far, it's kinda fun." Gina replied to her cousin with a smirk before going in the Mission Elevator with the others.

"This is ridiculous." Soma grunted before turning his head toward Yuu. "Stop them, Leader."

"I'm washing my hands of this." Yuu said, shaking his head and lifting his hands in a 'I'm not touching this' gesture. "Let Kota have his fun. Who knows, it might even work."

"Hmph, I doubt it." Soma grunted before turning his head away.

"Since most of the group is gone, I'm going back to my room to upgrade my equipment." Karen announced to the remaining group as she got up from her seat to leave.

"Hey, if you got the time, that's sublime." Yuu said to her in rhyme, making the others shack their heads at his lame quote.

"..."

"It's terrible, I know. But it's what I got out of the blue. Have fun upgrading, Karen."

"Hn, sayonara." Karen walked off from the others, going into the elevator as she took it down to her Floor.

As she was getting out of the elevator, once she hit her stop, she was halted from her progress by the sight of her cousin Shun and his friend Karel sitting by the Floor's snack lounge. Karel was sitting on the bench by the vending machines while Shun stood by the soda machine, deciding on his purchase.

"(Sigh) I'm thirsty. Shun, buy me something." Karel groaned out to his friend.

"Get your own drink. You got paid for the same mission as me, I'm not treating you." Shun refused as he looked over his options.

"Come on, don't be stingy."

"Heh, this coming from the guy who gives out less in a Link-Aid than me. I'm not treating you!" Shun huffed to his buddy before spotting Karen from the corner of his eyes. "?!"

"Well look who it is, the new wonder shot from the First Unit." Karel greeted to her in a slight tease. "Glad to see you again."

"Hmph," Karen huffed at them, from the hot breath of her nose. She planned to just ignore them and walk on by, but it would seem life had other plans...

"Dang it! I accidentally got that crappy 'First Love Juice' instead. That stuff makes me wanna puke." Shun huffed aloud to no one in particular before looking over to Karen and gently tossing the can to her. "Here."

"?!" She caught the can without a problem, it's cool condensation soaked into her fingers. She wondered why he was giving it to her. Perhaps in the hope that it would make her sick since he made him sick?

"I hear you like that nasty stuff, right? You'll need the energy from all those missions you guys in the First Mission have been doing lately."

"?!" Was... was he being nice?

"She gets a can and I don't?" Karel teased to Shun with a grin, trying to get under his skin.

"Zip it, Karel." Shun growled, crossing his arms as he looked away from the both of them, his cheeks slightly flushing. "I just don't like the idea of wasting money, is all."

"..." Karen didn't know what to make of this. His gesture was crude, but the kindness was still there... "Thanks..."

"!" Shun's eyes widened in shock at his little cousin's awkward attempt of a polite gesture toward him. Even though she had rushed to her room immediately after saying it, she still was nice enough to say to him in English like he preferred. Karen never listened to him, and she was never really ever genuinely polite towards him.

"Looks like you're starting to win her over."

"Shut up, Karel." Shun groaned at his friend before tossing him a cold soda fresh out of the machine. "Here. Now get off my back."

Back in her room, Karen contemplated what had just happened. Her mind began to wonder as she was changing her Healer Control Unit to Medic. What could have brought this on, was her cousin always like this? She remembers him being rude and crude like a jerk when she was little, but she had never recalled ever seeing kindness hidden behind his actions. Was this behavior new? Or perhaps was it there and she just hadn't seen it? Karen remember her father saying something about this...

_"[Shun, you'll never get better if you don't fix your attitude.]" Her father barked to her cousin Shun as she was about to enter into the dojo area._

_"Why should the way I am effect my skill?! My body works with a sword perfectly fine the way I am! You've seen it yourself, I'm one of the best students you have!" Shun barked back rudely at her father, not even speaking the traditional Japanese. Shun had always found the old way ridiculous, he was still forced to learn it but he wanted to stay with the times. And with the times, the old languages of the past were dying out._

_"[You're mind represents the state of your blade. It is an extension of your body, control in a flow like the rest of your body through your mind. If your mind is filtered and dilute, your skill will be the same way.]" Her father shot back at him, making Shun's body shake in embarrassing anger. "[You're a stubborn child, hotheaded, and reckless. Until you're able to pull yourself together, you will never be the best here or 'your' best.]"_

_"Grh, Backwards Old Man, what do you know?!" Shun huffed out in outrage as he got up from his place in seizan and stomped out of the dojo, not even bowing in respect as he stormed out. "I am the best, I've proven my worth!]"_

_"!" Karen slightly flinched as Shun finally made his way to her. At her age he was an intimidating figure as she had to look up to see his face and his body was bigger than hers. He was always rude to her when ever he came to visit, at times it felt like it would come out of nowhere. They would simply be hanging around each other, minding their own business, when he would start randomly picking on her for nothing. Shun was unpredictable, a storm in the body of a boy. But one about Shun that Karen knew for sure... he was a big jerk._

_"Hmph, out of my way, Small-fry." Shun huffed to her, moving her aside as he marched out of the dojo and back to the compound._

_Her father sighed from in the dojo, pinching his nose and shaking his head in exhaustion from his place at the Sensei's mat. Bowing before entering, Karen quickly walked to where Shun was once sitting, getting into seizan instead of running to her father, out of respect for her father while in the dojo._

_"[(Sigh) Sometimes I wish that boy didn't inherit his father's stubbornness. When will I ever get through to him?"] Her father said rhetorically aloud to himself._

_"[I don't understand why you even bother to train him, Father...]" Karen huffed as her little face scrunched up in anger at seeing how distressed Shun made her father. "[He's just a big, stupid jerk.]"_

_"[Hey now, watch it. He's family.]" Her father immediately shushed her in disappointment at her choice of words. "[He may be big to you, and sometimes hard to understand, but he's not stupid.]"_

_"[But, Father...]" Karen pouted at his sudden disapproval._

_"[Listen, Karen. Sometimes the hardest battle is with yourself.]"_

_"[What do you mean?]"_

_"[Sometimes we see with our eyes, other times we see with our hearts. But before we can see through our heart's eye we must first find ourselves.]" Her father explained. "[It's hard at times, nearly impossible for others. Shun's just having a hard time finding himself because the answer whispers, so he needs to listen closely. But the boy has the potential to find it, when the time comes you will see what I mean.]"_

_Karen was silent for several minutes, thinking it over. "[(Exhale) I don't understand, Father.]"_

_"[Heh, you will, my child. You will.]"_

Before Karen even knew it, she had changed her Upgrades to Ranged Kit 2 and OP Kit 3. What has gotten in to her? She had normally never let her mind wander around like this before. Perhaps... she was in need of meditation. A good brew of Oolong tea would help clear her mind, and perhaps help bring her to the answer of why her cousin was changing, why now was he deciding to grow...

*** Later in the Entrance ***

It had been awhile since the four member team had left. The others had busied themselves to bite off the time. The girls had gathered together to gossip among themselves, Yuu had occupied himself with some old Shounen Magazines, and Soma had zoned out the rest of the world as he listened to music on his MP3 player on his phone through earphones. But he wouldn't be able to zone out the world for long as Shōkan came storming into the Entrance like a bat out of hell.

"Well that had went just _perfect_!" She growled out sarcastically to herself as she stomped over to the other elevator, ignoring the concerned looked of the others. "Stupid Sariel! Stupid Backup! Ugh, I wanna bite somebody in the face!"

"S-Shōkan-chan, please." Kanon said pitifully to Shōkan as she stormed off into the elevator. "I-I said I was sorry-"

"I am in no mood!" Shōkan barked at Kanon, putting up a hand to stop Kanon in her tracks as Shōkan left in the elevator.

"What the hell just happen?" Soma asked Kota as he nervously followed behind after the girls, rubbing the back of his head in nervous embarrassment.

"I saw lovely flowers in bloom." Gina cooed in happy excitement as she passed Kota to make her way down to the stairway to head down to her room, since a storm had taken over the elevator. She looked like she had the time of her life, while Kota and Kanon looked like they were exposed in public in nothing but their underwear.

"Kota, what the hell happened out there?" Soma insisted for an answer.

"I messed up again..." Kanon pitifully answered as she seemed like she was about to cry.

"Shōkan, just... she just got to meet 'Cannon' for the first time." Kota awkwardly answered, trying to get the words out as he kicked his food and scratched his cheek with his finger in nervousness...

_"Didn't I tell you to stay out of my line of fire?!" Kanon barked at Shōkan as she was getting up from the hard torque shot at her back. They had just taken down the Sariel in the Tranquil Temple area, but not without any minor injuries.  
_

_Kota was nervous this would happen, Kanon's other personality would come out. Unlike her normal sweet and shy nature, Kanon's other side was more aggressive, vicious and a loose cannon. Firing at anyone who got in the way of her kill. The God Eaters of the Den had taken to calling this side of Kanon, 'Cannon'. Where Kanon was kind and gentle healer, Cannon was a rough and deadly killer. He knew Cannon would have to make her appearance eventually, but he was hoping not like this. Apparently the new rookie's and Cannon's characters were clashing with each other, as the two of them couldn't get along with each others._

_"When the hell did you say that?! I didn't hear shit while you were coming behind me and shooting!" Shōkan barked back at Kanon. Both of them were coming in to each others face._

_"It was a perfect spot to shoot for me."_

_"I was there first!"_

_"Oh grow up! This isn't Elementary School!"_

_"You're the one that needs to grow! Seeing something you want as already yours and just taking it! That's more of a child's mind set if ever I've heard of one!" Shōkan growled back. "You know, for someone whose name is a close resemblance to Kannon, you're not very merciful! If we were back at where I come from, you would be shanked for that!"_

_"Please, I'd reduce you to a hunk of meat before that happened!" Kanon threatened, boldly challenging Shōkan to make the next move._

_"Is that a threat-"_

_ROAR_

_"Shut the fuck up!" Shōkan screamed at the in coming Prithivi Mata, not in the mood to deal with it right now. Throwing her God Arc like a spear she impaled the Aragami on the wall by the hillside near the upper stairway. Her Forbidden Iceblade had crushed the Aragami's core by the sheer force of the throw, dropping it dead before it even entered the fight. _

_"Oh dear God, that was a turn on." Gina couldn't help but moan out in awe at the sheer power Shōkan had displayed without even trying. _

_"Uh..." Kota just awkwardly stayed silent in the background with Gina as he had no idea what to do as the other girls went at odds with each other._

_"I'll fill you with holes!" Kanon shot back._

_"Are you challenging me?!"_

_"Why don't you take your best shot instead of talking, you sack of meat?!" Kanon challenged as they both got in each others face, puffing up chest to chest. "You name when and where!"_

_"Oh yeah?!"_

_"Yeah, because when you get there you are DEAD!" They were practically screaming at each other as their foreheads wrestled one another._

_"Bitch, I will destroy you." Shōkan whispered loudly with venom as her eyes slanted. The look on her face had sent a chill through Kota's spine._

_"I think they get along smashingly well." Gina commented, making Kota stare at her as if she had just sprouted a second head. And to make matters worse, the vicious edge in Kanon's eyes had left her as they took on a more docile form.  
_

_"Wha-what? Uhm... W-what's going on?" Kanon had switched back to normal._

"Anyway, Shōkan just needs time to cool down," Kota finished off his explanation. "She doesn't want to get angry at Kanon for something that wasn't 'her' fault."

"Hn, I take it your plan was a bust." Soma concluded with a smirk at being proven right.

"Yeah. (Sigh) We got no Lindow to show for it in the long run." Kota sighed out, flopping his upper half down in disappointment as he let his arms dangle for a second. "Why? What was wrong? What went wrong? My Lovely Luring Lindow-Lineup failed!"

"... A lot was missing." Was all Yuu could let out, not wanting to bring Kota downer than he already was.

"Hm, so girls weren't enough for him, huh?" Suddenly Kota shot up again as he was hit with an epiphany. "Oh! I know! I'll add beer to that next time! I'll call it... The 'Lovely Luring Lindow Lineup, Round 2!' Yeah!"

"He's really thinking of a Round 2..." Soma groaned out in exhaustion before looking at Yuu almost pleadingly. "Stop him before he gets hurt, Leader."

"Yeah, I'm gonna have to put my foot down on this one." Yuu sighed, getting up and stretching before making his way over to Kota. "The last thing we need God Eaters going on a mission like that drunk, let alone if they try to get the Aragami drunk."

*** Author's Notes ***

Amaterasu is one of the main kami of ancient Japanese Shinto religion, goddess of the sun. Born from when her father, Izanagi, tried to rescue his wife, Izanami, from the Underworld after dying from childbirth but failed. Returning to the surface, he washed off the filth of the Underworld and from that Amaterasu was born when he washed out his right eye. Later Izanagi would create two more children which would be the brothers of Amaterasu.

The mention of Tsukuyomi, the god of the moon, is based off the story of why the sun and the moon never meet in the sky. The younger brother of Amaterasu and the second child of Izanagi, it is said Tsukuyomi was born when Izanagi washed out his right eye. In other alternate stories, Tsukuyomi was born from a mirror made of white copper in Izanagi's right hand. Tsukuyomi use to live in the heavens with his sister, but she never looked upon him again after she had sent him on a meeting feast with Uke Mochi, the goddess of food, as her representative. Disgusted by her way of providing the food for the feast, Tsukuyomi had killed her. Angered by the news, Amaterasu never looked upon her brother again, always moving to the other side of the sky whenever he was present.

Sayonara= goodbye

Kannon is the merciful goddess in Japanese Buddhist pantheon, however she appears in many other Asian religions with different names. Her main goal and vow as a goddess is to end the suffering of everyone and free all sentient from the cycle of reincarnation so they could find peace enlightenment or Dharma. One of her most noted lines in her legends was: "A life should definitely belong to one who tries to save it, not one who tries to take it."


	12. Chapter 12

A Beast in the Den

A few days have have passed and still no sign of Lindow from the search. The First Unit did their part of keeping the Aragami at bay. And the other two Units tried their best, but they were starting to get tired and lose spirit from coming up empty handed so many times.

"Hey, Tatsumi. How's it going?" Yuu tiredly greeted the 2nd Unit's Leader as he was waking up for the new day.

"Fine, I guess. Just got back from a late-night search with my team. Haha...Still, this search for Lindow is getting hard." Tatsumi sounded a little crestfallen, but he didn't want Yuu feeling down along with him so he pumped himself up. "I mean, not that I'm losing confidence or anything!"

"Hang in there, Tatsumi." Yuu encouraged. "We're all counting on you guys to bring Lindow back home."

"Yeah... we'll bring him back, no problem!" Tatsumi agreed, getting pumped. But then he calmed down in concern as he noticed that Yuu was looking a little pale. "You alright, Yuu? You look a little terrible."

"Huh? Actually, I haven't been feeling very well this morning." Yuu admitted, rubbing off the sweat from the side of his face.

"Maybe you should go see Dr. Sakaki about it, or see if the Sick Bay has any medicine for you."

"Thanks, Tatsumi. I think I might just do that." Yuu waved him goodbye as he went into the elevator again. "Take it easy."

The ride down to the Lab Floor was short, and it only took Yuu a couple of seconds to make his way to Dr. Sakaki's Lab door. But he stopped in his tracks when he noticed Ren in a dazed like state, just standing in the hallway.

"Ren?" Yuu called out to him in concern. But it was like Ren didn't hear him, it took Yuu placing his hand on Ren's shoulders before Ren would respond to his presence.

"...Oh, hello." Even his greeting seemed out of touch.

"..."

"Sorry, I'm not all here right now. I seem to be feeling a little off." Ren admitted, trying to pull himself together as he looked upon Ren with a concern of his own. "Are you feeling, alright?"

"Heh, silly kid." Yuu lightly chuckled at Ren as he rustled Ren's hair. "Here you are looking like a walking zombie and you're worry about me? You should think of yourself for once."

"Heha," Ren tiredly chuckled at Yuu's antics before pushing his hand away. "Still, you're not looking so good yourself."

"Hm, well now that you mention it..."

"I mean, I kind of have an idea why, but..."

"Heh, maybe we've be drinking to much 'First Love Juice'. I mean, I'm sure the amount we've been drinking might not be good for our stomach acid."

"Oh, it has nothing to do with the First Love Juice. I think..."

"Maybe you should rest for a little while." Yuu suggested, grabbing Ren's arm as support as he lead the boy into the Sick Bay. Sitting him down on one of the free sickbeds. "Why don't you lie down for a bit, it might be good for you. I'll go see if Dr. Sakaki has something that might help."

"Ah, okay. Thank you." Ren thanked Yuu before putting his feet on the bed to lie fully down, still looking in slight pain as his face stay scrunched up.

Leaving Ren be, Yuu exited the Sick Bay and went next door to Dr. Sakaki's Lab.

"Yo, Doc?"

"Sorry, Yuu, he's not here right now." Licca answered, being the only person in the room.

"Dang... Well, where did he go?" Yuu asked, slightly upset that the Doc couldn't be there when he needed him.

"He went out to take care of some research, he should be back by this afternoon." Licca answered before fulling turning to face Yuu. "But I'm glad you're here. I need to talk to you."

"Oh? About what?" Yuu asked, slightly tired. He wasn't feeling 100% today, but Licca barely asked for anything so he would hear her out to the best of his ability.

"You know Lindow's God Arc?"

"Yeah?" Yuu answered, not knowing where she was going with this.

"And how you touched it?" She brought back up at him, slightly angry in her tone.

"Yeah." He nervously answered this time at her angered question, unable to look her in the eye due to the memory of how she reacted when it happened in the first place. She was so relieved that he was okay when he had woken up in the Sick Bay, but then she got angry at him and made sure he knew that for days. The thought of her getting angry about that topic again made him nervous.

"Well, its not doing too well, so I discussed that with Dr. Sakaki as a last resort. He told me that it probably needs to intake cells from a Raven Great Wing. And he said... 'I have an accomplice, so you should ask that person'. So, uh... Do you understand now?"

"Yeah, I got it." Yuu sighed, tiredly rubbing the back of his neck as he messaged away the soreness. "Don't worry, Licca. I'll get what you need."

"Yeah, I knew I could count on you." Licca warmly smiled. "I know we always give you the tough work. Well, I leave this to you then. Good luck."

"Thanks." Giving a wave goodbye, Yuu headed back up to the Entrance. Knowing that it was time for his team to meet up for the day's mission schedule, he thought he could grab a few of them to help him search for the item in question before he headed out.

As he expected, all of his team was there and accounted for in the Entrance lounge area. All except Shōkan.

"Yo, Leader. What's up?" Kota greeted to him with a two finger salute.

"Yuu, you look pale." Alisa gasped in concern.

"I'm fine, just a little stomach ache is all." Yuu assured to her, giving her the best cheeky grin he could. "Anyway, I need to salvage some items. Who's up for a trip to the City of Mercy with me? There's been reports of a Hannibal and a Vajra in the area, so we'll have to be prepared for anything."

"What's a Hannibal?" Karen asked, never having bumped into or heard of that Aragami breed before.

"It's a dragon-like Aragami that doesn't know how to stay down." Soma huffed out an answer, slightly annoyed that it would seem that another patch of rookies refused to do their homework.

"!" But the news sent a spark through Karen's core. Could this be the Aragami she's been looking for? "I wanna go."

"Me too!" Alisa requested too, raising her hand as if to make sure he picked her.

"I'm in!" Kota raised his hand as well.

"I'll go." Soma agreed along with the other.

"Whoa. Didn't expect to get the whole team to volunteer." Yuu nervously chuckled, rubbing the back of his head in an automatic awkward reaction due to his team's energy. "Looks like I'll have to choose. Hmm, let's see... Uh... Soma... Kota, and Sakuya. You're with me."

"What?" "All right!" Alisa pouted while Kota cheered at Yuu's choice.

"Tst," Karen clicked her teeth in slight frustration at having her chance for revenge taken from her.

"Cheer up, Karen-chan. You'll get it, next time." Sakuya soothed to her, trying to cheer her up. Karen gave her a small grin at the kind gesture, but her frustrations wouldn't let it live long. That's when Shōkan arrived from out of elevator, with an Ocean Hoodie in her arm.

"Morning, guys." She greeted them with a grin while continuing to walk away as she passed them.

"You're late, Shōkan." Yuu lectured to her in disappointment at her unprofessional tardiness. They couldn't afford such behavior on their job, such actions could make your team wind up dead.

"Didn't Tsubaki tell you? Today is my day off." Shōkan announced to them as she walked down the stairs toward the lower Entrance level. "I'm going out for a while. I'll be back by nightfall."

"..." Yuu just stared, following her with his eyes as she went over to the Merchant.

"Hey, man, got what I needed?" She asked, not really caring for the others in the room that might be listening in or the eyes that were following her.

"Yeah, I got it. But why do you need all that stuff?"

"My reasons are my own. My money should be a good enough answer to you."

"Heh, well that's true. Anyway, I put the stuff outside in front of the Den like you asked."

"Hm, then I better hurry before someone else tries to snatch it." Shōkan nodded, pleased with his answer. "Good work."

"..." Yuu continued to watch her as she went to head out the front entrance. "Change of plans. Alisa, Karen, you can come along. I want Kota and Soma to stay behind."

"Aw what?" "Yes sir!" Kota pouted while Alisa cheered at the sudden changes.

"Arigatoo, Yuu-san." Karen bowed in gratitude, sighing in relief that she would get her chance after all.

"Go ahead and get your God Arcs, ladies. I'll catch up to you in a little bit." Yuu ordered, signally for the girls to head out.

"Right." "Yes sir." "Very well." Sakuya, Alisa, and Karen replied at the same time.

"Aw, come on, Yuu. Are you just hogging all the girls to yourself?" Kota whined at his leader before Yuu had pulled him in close by his arm wrapped around Kota's shoulder. He had waited until the girls had disappeared inside the Mission Elevator before doing this, while doing the same with Soma to bring the guys in close. "Whoa!"

"Listen, I have a special job for you guys today." Yuu announced, loudly whispering to the both of them. Enough for them to hear easily while being quiet enough for the others in the room not to peek in. "I want you to follow Shōkan around. See what she's up to, while not getting caught."

"I thought you said we should trust her? Didn't you say we should give her a chance?" Soma countered back at Yuu, a little skeptic about Yuu's request.

"I know, and I still believe that. But right now, I have this bad feeling in my gut. And I want to make sure it has nothing to do with her."

"..." That answer still didn't ease Soma into the idea.

"Just keep an eye on her. If you don't see anything, don't tell me, I'll know that my gut's just acting weird. But if you do find something, then... well... at least we'll know."

"Tst, fine."

"Alright, but I'm not exactly comfortable with this." Kota admitted.

"You'll be fine, just think about yourselves as spies incognito." Yuu tried to assure to them, still watching Shōkan from the corner of his eyes as she went out the Den's glass door. "You better hurry. You're starting to lose her."

He gave them a slight push toward the stairs to give them a start to head out. Waving to them as they started to follow Shōkan from a distance.

"Good luck!" Yuu encouraged to them before they went out the door.

"Yeah, whatever." Soma groaned out in response.

*** City of Mercy ***

"Okay, let's go." Sakuya sighed out, psyching herself up for the mission before jumping off of the Starting Point.

"Let's go!" Alisa chirped in, not too far behind Sakuya.

"Let's begin." Karen agreed, heart bumping faster in excitement as she was waiting for this moment. Today, could be _the_ day.

"The targets have luckily been detected in two different locations. Let's take a right and go after the one closes to us." Yuu instructed, running pass the girls to take the lead.

As they turned the corner, Karen was slightly crestfallen that the first target they would be facing was the Vajra. It roared to them in greeting as they came out of the alleyway.

"I'll give you a hand." Sakuya assured, firing cover shots at the Vajra's face as Yuu and Karen charged on forward. The Vajra tried to headbutt them in a charge but missed and ended up having to flip back, but not without receiving damage from the two blade wielding God Eaters. "Quickly!"

"I'm on it." Karen assured as she dashed for the head. "Men!"

"Ah!" Yuu grunted as he did a jump strike at the Vajra's head as it went back. Looking at the monitor on his armlet, he detected the other Aragami approaching their way from the other side of the church. "The Hannibal is coming our way!"

"Crap." Karen groaned in annoyance, pulling out her shield as she blocked the Vajra's spherical bolt attack. The other target seemed to be taking its time coming around the church, maybe the could finish off the Vajra before it got there.

The Vajra kept moving, making Karen switch from head to paw armor as targets. Eventually, the Vajra jumped away from the reach of her blade, roaring at her in defiance. Not wanting to cross the distance, Karen changed into Gun-mode and began to fire. She wanted to slowly make her way back into the alleyway to lure the Vajra to her, and away from the approaching so called 'Hannibal'.

"I gotcha." She taunted, hitting her mark. But the Vajra didn't take the bait. Instead it made a run for it, into the building with the forever stopped clock.

"Dammit, everyone, stay to the walls. Let's finish it off without attracting the Hannibal into the fray." Yuu instructed, staying to the walls as he made his way into the building. The others followed suit, ducking behind the platform so as to avoid attention as they made a run into the building.

Karen couldn't even change back into Blade-mode, since they wanted to avoid making any nose. So when they approached the salvage eating Vajra, she waited for Yuu to go for a Devouring bite to get the Vajra's attention before firing. The Vajra roared directly into her face as she noticed something important.

"Out of ammo." She grunted in annoyance before hastily changing into Blade-mode without missing a beat. But it wasn't fast enough for her to pull up her shield or dodge the Vajra's lightning ball attack as it jumped back. "Gah!"

Pulling herself to getter, she dashed after her target. Just in time to avoid the Vajra's charging lightning balls attack, and getting her up and close into the Vajra's temporary vulnerable state.

"Hmph, you brought this upon yourself due to your own technique's flaw." She stated to the Vajra as she started attacking at its open head armor while the others moved out of the way of its charging attack. Leaving Karen to be the only doing damage at the moment. But Alisa had come in on the side, out of the attacks reach, and went in for a Devouring bite.

"It worked!" She cheered as the burst was a success.

"The Hannibal's going back." Yuu announced as he noticed the Hannibal on the monitor turning around and walking back where it came from.

"Then lets finish it off!" Alisa insisted as she began to fire with more vigor, accidentally nicking Yuu with one of her Oracle Bullets. "I-I'm so sorry!"

"Easy, Alisa, the Vajra isn't going anywhere." Yuu said to her, in his own way of assuring her that he was okay.

"It's cracked." Karen informed as she had released one downward crossed slash at the Vajra that broke off its claw armor and knocked it off its feet.

Not wanting to attack a downed target, she dashed back while the other continued to fire at it.

"Get him!" Alisa insisted to her while Yuu went in with his blade.

"No." Karen firmly stated, watching the Aragami as she waited for it to get back on its feet again.

"What are you doing? Now's our chance, take it down while it's still vulnerable!" Sakuya insisted.

"No." Karen would not be swayed. "I will not hit a target while it cannot fight. I have no grudge against this Aragami to make me desire to attack while it's off its feet. This isn't personal for me, just a fight."

"Leave her be for now, it's getting back up anyway." Yuu instructed to Sakuya and Alisa, not wanting them to be distracted by Karen's strange battle behavior while their was still a live Aragami close to them.

"!" Immediately as soon the Vajra was on its feet, Karen released a potential energy charged sideways slash toward the Vajra's face, destroying its head armor and making it take a step back.

"She's getting the job done either way." Yuu commented as they all got into the fray.

Noticing her health was a little low, Sakuya began to fire Recovery Bullets at Karen.

"(Sigh) I'm saved." Karen sighed to herself as the relief hit her. Putting up her shield, she dodge the Vajra's bolt attack this time as it leaped backwards away from the group. Taking her blade into her left hand, she dashed after the Vajra, giving it the final slashed as she cut into its right side. It roared one last time before it hit the ground. "Next."

"Let's go after the last one." Yuu instructed while him and the teammates who could extracted the Vajra's core.

"You take the lead." Sakuya suggested, as she waited for Yuu to pass her before following.

While Yuu wasn't paying attention to his monitor, the Aragami had made its way to the side of the building they were in, on their right. So immediately after they got out of the walkway into the building, the Hannibal had spotted.

Everything seemed to go in slow motion for Karen as she heard its familiar roar, turning towards what she had been waiting for all these years. This was going to be the most memorable moment of her life, but just has her anticipation had built up, it was crushed. The adrenaline had stopped bumping through her heart... this was not the Aragami she was looking for.

"Dammit!" Karen growled toward the Hannibal in rage, dashing toward it with mild haze from anger. "You're not the one!"

"Karen, calm down!" Yuu ordered in concern. "You can't get wild up around this guy, it's moves are too unpredictable as they are strategic!"

But his warning came too late as the Hannibal gave her a combo punch, that only took one hit to knock her back. She was able to get a few angry strikes in on its harm, but she was not expecting it to counter her like that. This Aragami's moves were so similar to 'that' ones, but while the one she was looking for had the style of a cold as stone swordsmen trained in the art of killing, this one was more like a brawler with a fire of unquenchable fury. Karen had to learn that the hard way as it suddenly shot a fireball out of its mouth.

"Gah! Of course it would be able to breath out fire, it looks like a dragon, why didn't I think of that before?" Karen berated herself as she got back on her feet again, only to see the Hannibal form a sphere of fire into its hands, looking at her with a predatory gleam. "(Sigh) Oh great."

She pulled out her shield in time, to only receive a fraction of the damage. And learning from her past mistakes, she dashed out of the way of its spitting mouth, just in time to avoid a fireball.

The white Aragami began to curl its tail around itself. Getting a bad feeling from the small gesture Karen pulled up her shield, just in time to avoid the whack of its incoming tail. It had turned to face Yuu, even jumping into the air to get an upper punch at him. But it missed as Yuu dashed out of the way. Slightly frustrated at its moving target, it began to build up fire in its mouth. Firing one charged up fireball toward Yuu before charging up on two legs at Yuu for a double claw attack. Karen had been close and was able to dodge the fireball, but she had never seen the charge attack coming. Widening her eyes in shock as the Hannibal charged through the fireball with its claws out, ramming through Karen hard as it went after Yuu.

"Here's a Recovery Bullet!" Alisa said to Karen before shooting it at her. Yuu was find as he jumped back onto the platform, making the Hannibal crash into it instead.

"Thank you." Karen sighed in relief before running after the Hannibal. The Hannibal had turned to her as it heard her running, but it couldn't react in time as Karen got a good slice at its face. "Gh!"

Roaring as it stumbled back, the Hannibal got up on two legs and wipes off the escaped saliva from its lips from Karen's attack, growling in the process. Alisa had changed into Blade-mode and jumped into the air to get a good slash at its head while it was distracted. But it didn't care for Alisa, it wanted Karen.

Getting down on one hand, it looked at her as if ready to pounce. Swiping its tail at Karen before jumping behind her. Just as Karen turned around toward her maneuvering opponent, she only had one second to pull out her shield before it went at her in a 1-2-3 punch combo. It roared at her as it saw that its attack was ineffective.

"Too slow!" Yuu taunted at the Hannibal as he came in from the side an attacked its gauntlet armor. Once again it swiped its tail at them, only to distract them from the wall of fire it was spraying toward them.

"You left yourself open." Karen lectured as she came in on the side and attacked its gauntlet arm, while missing the flow of the fire.

The Hannibal had flipped on one arm, out of the way of her blade before slinging out its tail to get a good areal strike in at everyone.

"(Huff) He's good." Karen admitted aloud as she took one Recovery Pill II. Nearly having enough time to dash out of the way of its charging attack. Jumping back out of the reach of her blade, it began spewing out a wall of flames toward her direction. Jumping back a little, she changed into Gun-mode, with the mindset that bullets go through fire. "I gotcha."

She fired at the Hannibal's head, not relenting until the last Oracle Bullet. Dashing toward it after its flames died out, only to move to the side as it tried to shot a fireball at her. Jumping out of the way of the approaching God Eaters again, the Hannibal flipped over the platform, but not before Alisa and Yuu got in a Devouring bite.

"Here!" Alisa shouted as a heads up before shooting a Team-bullet at Yuu and two at Karen.

"AhhHHH!" She kiai'ed as the burst started to flow through her.

Running at the Hannibal like an adrenaline rush, Karen began slashing at its arm, destroying its gauntlet armor.

Angered, the Hannibal tried to spew fire at them again, but Karen had tripped it with her blade. Taking out the Hannibal's back scale before knocking it off its feet.

"What... is that?" Karen gasped in awe as she saw a halo of fire wings spew out of the back of the Hannibal, from the broken scale. It had almost seemed divine, like the purging burning fires of legend.

"What are you doing?! Now's not the time to zone out, Karen!" Yuu barked at her, bringing her back to reality, before going in for a Devouring bite at the downed Hannibal. "Heh, eat away."

"Go!" Sakuya instructed to Karen while firing, as the Hannibal got back on its feet.

"Take this!" Alisa had shot Karen some more Team-bullets as her blade was going in for the strike. Giving it the last second boost before her blade made contact. Giving Karen enough power to finish off the Hannibal before it could do anything.

The Hannibal had let out a growl, looking up to sky as it took a few steps forward. Karen couldn't help herself from taking a few steps back as it felt like the Hannibal was approaching her. It let out one more growl again, weaker than before, reaching toward her before collapsing to the ground. It's outstretched arm smothered by its side as its other arm laid out from it. It's mouth was left wide open as if the breath of life had left from there. Karen didn't know how to take it all in.

"Mission cleared, good job!" Alisa cheered, bringing Karen out of her wondering.

"M-mission cleared." Karen got out, trying to not bring attention to herself.

"Good job, everyone!" Sakuya praised to the team as Yuu and Alisa went to extract the core.

"Okay, good job, everyone." Yuu agreed along with Sakuya. Sighing in relief as he spotted a Great Black Wing in the salvaging area by the church near where the Hannibal had collapsed. "We got what we came for, let's head back."

"It would be good to go home and freshen up." Sakuya sighed in relief that they would be able to go back now.

"Don't let your guard down until the end." Alisa lectured to Sakuya as she noticed her companion start to relax while they were still out in the wasteland. She was about to keep going with the others when she noticed that Karen was still staring at the dead Hannibal. "Karen, what's the holdup?"

Her call had got the attention of the others as they stopped in their tracks and turned around to see what was going on. Realizing that she was making her team wait, Karen snapped out of her thoughts and quickly went for a Devouring bite to extract what she could from the Hannibal.

"Nothing. It's just..." Karen looked at her God Arc while it was biting into the Hannibal, pulling it out and watching as it went back to normal. She couldn't help but look at her reflection in her blade along with the dead Hannibal behind it as the Hannibal's blood slid down her blade. "That was a formidable enemy."

She swiped her blade in the air, removing the blood from her cold steel before turning away from the Hannibal and walking toward the other.

"I take it that was not the Aragami you were looking for." Sakuya commented as Karen had caught up to walk beside her.

"No... but it was close. A sub-breed perhaps." Karen replied, before tense air came over. "Maybe I'll run into it sooner than I think."

Yuu had looked through his peripheral behind him at the rookie and Sakuya while Alisa walked beside him, making small talk about what she planned to do when she got back. Yuu heard her out, but only in the back of his head as his thoughts wondered to the new rookies.

Karen was easy to read, she had some secrets about her past but she was still open about her goals here. And she was less of a threat to the Den than the other rookie was as of now. Yuu didn't want to doubt the intentions of Shōkan, but his gut was having a bad feeling, and it never lead him wrong before. Maybe it was about Shōkan herself, or something around her, he had hoped it was the latter. Either way, he wonder how the guys were doing tailing her...

*** Meanwhile with Soma and Kota ***

She had been out all day. Going from shop to shop around the Branch, getting certain items from each merchant. Soma and Kota would've thought nothing of it, just another day out shopping for a girl. But it was the way she went about it that was odd. She had only got a certain amount of items from each store, and only one to two type of items from each store.

Now these items appeared in several stores which she could've gotten the exact amount she needed in one spot. But she didn't, she only got a certain amount in one store and area as if she wasn't try to raise suspension to the amount she was purchasing.

Not to mention the items she was getting. It wasn't like she was shopping for shoes and clothes, like any other girl. No, she was buying cloths not in her size, from children to adults and men to women's. She went to grocery buying the max amount of rations aloud in that store before moving to another. And she even went to supply stores to get cinder-blocks, cement mixture, and paint. She even got tools, one from each supply store to not raise a flag.

And if that didn't make matters strange enough, she was carrying it all in a push wagon that she had covered with a blanket and pushed from behind to keep an eye on her supply. She didn't stop for food breaks or even eat from the food supply she bought. Soma and Kota could only look upon her odd behavior in concern at a distance as they snacked on their own minor rations they brought.

When it looked like she was finally done with her odd shopping spree, she had decided to take her cart to the shadier side of the Outer Ghetto. It was twilight now, and the sun was about to go down making this a dangerous area to be out on, especially a girl alone. She had gone to the farthest side of the Outer Ghetto, towards the Anti-Aragami Wall, where she had made her stop at a high-up open area that looked out on the Outer Ghetto. A Supply Truck was parked behind its stonewall; it was one of those trucks with a sheet covered top over its bed, open to see out the back. It looked deserted, along with the area. Shōkan put on her Ocean Hoodie, lifting up its hood over her head and just leaned on the stonewall without care as she waited for something while the sun continued to go down.

She didn't move from that spot, she didn't enjoy the scenery or the beautiful sunset. She just stood there with her arms crossed and waited, until the sound of footsteps came crunching closer. A brunette with greasy hair from lack of wash and care came toward her, his body fully covered as a scarf hung low on his neck and hood hung down behind him. He was a young man, looking to be in his late teens or early 20s. He grinned at her in a way that reached his chocolate brown eyes as she turned her head to look at him.

"Famine." He greeted to her with a nod and the tipping on an invisible hat on his head in civil gesture.

"Hmph, Mole." She greeted back, giving him the okay to lean on the wall beside her.

"Are you alone?"

"Of course." She huffed to him in insult that he would even ask that. But letting it slide, she got back to business. "I have a job for you."

"Oh? To who or what am I smuggling in?" He cooed to her in good humor, and his eyes started to glimmer in excitement.

"Out." She corrected. "I need you to smuggle some supplies back to our home town for me to be redistributed. I believe you can do it."

"Hm, I don't know, Famine." He groaned out, scratching the back of his head as he looked at what she had wanted him to deliver. "This looks like a heavy load. It'll be hard to get it out of here without attracting attention to myself."

"Hmph, you're the Mole." Shōkan reminded to him in what the boys believed to be encouragement. "I've seen you carry more over these Walls under worse conditions."

"Yeah, but that was then and this is now. How did you even come across all this stuff?"

"I have my ways. My. Own. Tiring. Ways." She groaned out the last part.

"Heh, but how do you know you can even trust me? I could take your stuff and just run for all you know."

"You'd never betray me." Shōkan said matter-of-factly. "You don't turn on your own."

"Heh, well aren't you sweet."

"Beside..." She said before swiftly moving her arms out of their cross, holding a knife that looked like it appeared out of nowhere and laid the edge of its blade across his throat. Her eyes turning into a cold rage as she tilted her head a little to look at him. "If I ever find out that even one of my items didn't make it to its destination, I will hunt you down without a second thought."

"Heh ha-ha-hahaaaa! (Hiss) There's never been one to tell that tale of crossing the great Famine and living, huh?" The Mole laughed humorless, disregarding the blade at his throat.

"Hmph, I'm surprised you still call me that." Shōkan commented to him before removing the blade from its threatening spot and back to its hiding place in her arms, turning her head to look back straight ahead. "I gave up that name a long time ago."

"Hm? Then what am I to call you now?" He playfully asked, titling in head in good gesture.

"Hmph, call me what you want." She smirked at him without looking away from her pointed direction.

"Heh, I think I'll stick with Famine, for old times' sake." He gave her a smirk back before it faded away again. "Now then, about my money for transporting these 'goods'."

"I can pay, if that's what you're asking." She had to look at him with a raised eyebrow as he brought up such an obvious question.

"Oh I know you're good for it. But how about you do me a favor and I'll cut my price in half."

"I'm listening..." She replied, intrigued by the offer.

"You see, there's this local gang that started up in the area. They jacked my supplies from under my nose, leaving me with almost nothing. I need you to get it back. Rough them up a bit for me, so they know not to do this again."

"And why should I help you? The local troublemakers here are not my problem. Why should I dirty my hands again?"

"Because they took the stuff that was going to the same destination as yours."

"..." She got up from her spot on the stonewall. Turning back to face the Mole as a determination came over her. "Do you have it?"

"Heh, you're lucky I keep this thing around for a keep-sake." The Mole smirked before reaching behind him and tossing her a metal chain. It didn't look like anything special, it was just a long metal chain, it's links clanged together noisily as she wrapped the long chain around her body. "I hope you're still as good as you use to be with that thing."

"Where can I find the people you are looking for...?"

*** Earlier that day back in the Hanger ***

The team had just gotten back from hard morning's mission, and were in the process of placing their God Arcs in their assigned Hanger when Licca had approached them.

"Welcome back. How did the mission go?" She greeted to them in friendly smalltalk.

"It was a breeze." Alisa answered with a huff of pride.

"That's great." Licca happily cheered before turning to Yuu. "Huh, Yuu? Did you get that 'thing' I asked for?"

"Yup," he answered, handing her a Great Black Wing into her gloved hand. "Here."

"Thanks. Good work today."

"If you need me, tell Tsubaki. I'm gonna be resting in the Sick Bay."

"You still don't feel well, Yuu?" Alisa voiced out in concern.

"Not really, but I'm feeling a little bit better than this morning. I'm just gonna sleep it off."

"Okay. Please take care of yourself."

"Heh, I will. Thanks for the concern, Alisa." Yuu smiled at Alisa as they walked out of the Hanger together.

"You want to come to my room for some white tea and a chat, Karen?" Sakuya offered to her.

"Hm, I think I'll take you up on that offer. Just give me a second to restock."

"Okay, see you there." Sakuya waved goodbye to her as she head up in the elevator.

"Oh, Karen, I finally completed that blade you wanted." Licca called out to her, recalling that she had recently gotten it done and had yet to give it to Karen. It was best to catch her while she was still here before having to wait for whenever she would see her again, hoping that it was a good time.

"Really?" Karen said to her, stopping in her tracks, as she tried not to sound as overly excited by the news as she was.

"Yeah, it took me a while to get the job done properly. What with the constant heating and cooling of the blade and what not, it was even hard getting the clay to work around the blade like I wanted to. But I did it." Licca explained, happily patting herself on the back as she handed her work to Karen. "I hope you like it."

"..." Karen had given the blade a look over in its sheath. It was well designed and wrapped well with fine material, of an onyx color darker than the shadows, the same went for the handle. She had even coated the inside of the sheath with bee's wax to keep the blade from falling out of its sheath without the required finger pressed pressure to pull them apart. And once she applied that, she was pleased to see the beautiful sheen of the virgin blade. Licca had created the blade from a steel alloy mix of just the right amount of iron, lead, and copper that gave the blade a blood red color while keeping its strength in tack, just like Karen requested. It was well shaped, well balanced, and practically matched her weight handle. But most of all... it reminded Karen of 'her' blade... The thought of it was starting to make Karen emotional, holding in the raw emotions, she turned back to Licca. "It's beautiful... Thank you, Licca-dono."

"I'm so glad it pleases you. Now take good care of it now. I hope it does the same for you..."

*** Late that night in Yuu's room ***

The boys had just gotten back from their recon mission, a half an hour before Shōkan had returned to the Den. She was suppose to report back to the Den by nine o'clock at night, but she took her sweet time anyway. But what the boys had seen out there had shocked them beyond words. They knew Shōkan was a little of a wild one, they just didn't think she was that far over. She was practically running with wolves and was on the prowl.

"So how did it go?" Yuu asked, intrigued to find out the results Soma and Kota had brought back. Alisa and Sakuya were just as edger to hear the results of there espionage as well, practically sitting on the edge of their seats on the couch. Karen and Shōkan were no where to be found in this little powwow meeting of the First Unit. Karen, they felt just wasn't ready for this information, and Shōkan... they just didn't want her to find out about this.

"..." Soma remained silent, keeping his head down as he gritted his teeth and his fingers dug into his arms in frustration.

"You were right to be weary of her, Yuu." Kota finally admitted, disappointed to find the results they did about their new rookie. "She was a gang member, and a good one at that."

"We all knew she was in a gang in the past, she already told us that. She was pretty high up there before she quit." Yuu stated, tired by the information they all ready had.

"High up is a pretty nice way of putting it..." Kota dishearteningly chuckled. "She was the _leader_ of the gang."

"!"

"Whoa, that _is_ pretty high up there."

"And it was not just any run-of-the-mill gang, it was a big one. They called themselves the 'Riders', an organized gang mafia that split into four sections apparently. Each Branch looked after its own area, and had its own leader. Shōkan's turf was apparently run by the Branch called Famine, which she had been named in the gang as by her title as leader." Kota explained. "I don't know much about the other Branches, but she was vicious enough out there to give me an idea."

"What exactly did she do...?" Yuu asked, nervous about the answer he would get.

"..." At last Soma finally looked up at the group and answered in Kota's stead. "She tore them apart..."

_It was nightfall by the time __Shōkan had lead the guys to a beat down office building, long since shut down as a insecure structure and left to ruin. The Moon shined its light into the buildings dusty and broken windows, all valuables left in the place long since looted. The place had been emptied out as a gang base for the local crime ring, each floor catered to an illegal function of its own, and its base level parking lot had been turned into a shipping area that function for a street fighting ring for either annunciations or just gambling._

_From outside the window, Soma and Kota looked in to see that they were moving around some covered up goods on moving-carts as one of the members counted the money in their hands. Soma could already tell what kind of characters these dirt-bags played out: wild, cocky, easily tempered, and quick to the trigger. And so with great certainty, Soma concluded that he would rather not deal with these low-lives right now. He will report this to the local authorities later, but he rather not get caught so he stayed low with Kota. Which Kota silently agreed with him. He had grew up in an area like these parts, and he even wouldn't go around these places at night, let alone in the day. There was just some places in the Outer Ghetto that you avoided like the plague, if you want to keep all your teeth in. From what he remember, guys like these were always power hungry and were always looking for fresh members. A couple of times local gang scouts would try and recruit one of the kids in his neighborhood, but none would bite, they knew what was good for them. And lucky for him, he had found a better paying job that helped the community. It had its hazards, but at least he knew who was his friend and who wasn't._

_It had been quiet for a while now, they know they saw __Shōkan sneak in from the upper window, but she had yet to make an appearance. The gang members just went about their business like a normal routine, bragging about what a big catch they got over the others or how easy it was to steal it. They were so obnoxious and infuriating, Soma had almost had the urge to go down and punch one of them as he brag of beating down an old lady for her weekly rations. But he couldn't blow their cover, it would be hell to fight their way through if they got caught. _

_But that's when 'it' happened. At first it started with a banging in the ceiling supports, making the members stop what they were doing and listened. Then the banging came from the other side of the ceiling supports, getting them on edge as they started to reach for whatever weapon they had on them. But suddenly they started flinching and panicking once they heard the railing of chains, each link playing a part in a haunting tone. It was here, it was there, it was everywhere. The sound of chains rang all around them. And then..._

_"Into the dark I see_

_Into the light_

_I want but I can't find myself_

_Hiding away, from the real world_

_Scared I am_

_While the forest hides me."_

_They boys couldn't believe this, __Shōkan was singing in the shadows. She wasn't giving away her position away, she sounded like she was everywhere, but she was telling them that she was there._

_"What the hell is that?!" One of the members barked, looking around where he thought the voice was coming from, but it kept moving._

_"I don't know man, where is she?!"_

_"She wanders, she wanders around_

_With her head held high_

_She wanders, she wanders around."_

_"AH!" One of the members gauged out as a chain swung down from above, wrapping around his neck before yanking him up into the shadows. His deafening screams was all they heard before it died out and the song continued to go on._

_"Let down."_

_"Ah!" Another one was grabbed._

_"Let down."_

_"Ah!" And another one was yanked into the shadows. Screaming along with the other until their voices suddenly died out. They began dropping down from the ceiling like flies._

_"By the people all around me."_

_"This bitch is making a fool of us!" One of the members barked, pointing is gun into the shadows as his comrades came down from the ceiling in unconscious bloody heaps._

_"I don't like the sound of this, man. I've heard rumors about the sound of chains." One of the members began to panic as his sweaty hands held tighter onto his crowbar as he began to shake._

_"And I reached out for heaven's warm embrace."_

_"!" Soma and Kota began to panic, she had jumped down from her hiding spot in the shadows and revealed herself to the remains gang members still standing. A dead look was painted on her face from behind her hood as the chain wrapped around her waist and her arms._

_"There she is!"_

_"Kill this bitch!" One of them ordered, making the others charge at her. But they did not faze her, she began to swing the end of the chain in her hand as she nonchalantly walked toward them._

_"Let down, let down_

_And I wipe my own tears away_

_Little girl cries to heaven_

_Enclose me in your grace."_

_The first guy to reach her had a crowbar, which she wrapped her still swing chain around it. Locking it in, she pulled it from his grip and whacked him hard on the side, breaking his arm and bringing him down for the count. Making sure he stayed down, she put pressure on the back of his knee with her foot and broke his leg, adding on to his scream of pain. Another guy came at her from the side, but she didn't even want to deal with him. Whipping him with her chain in a hard swing, she hit him hard enough to make the whiplash bleed and knock him out as it made contact with the side of his face._

_"For the safety, she needs_

_The warmth she wished to feel_

_Face to the wall_

_I don't want to see_

_What's behind_

_I turn my back to it all."_

_"Damn you, I'll cut you until you beg for death for that!" One of them barked as he came at her with a knife. But that's when she did something he leased expected. _

_She pulled her chain to wrap around his free wrist, making escape impossible as she engaged him in a shank fight with her own blade. Her eyes terrified him with their blank stare as she continued pushing forward toward him, thrusting her blade so fast he barely had time to side step out of its way._

_"Let down."_

_"!" He continued backing up as the blade continued to keep coming, not giving him enough time to counter back. Or even making him able to grab her arm to hold her still as she thrust outward, since she kept pulling it back to herself too quickly._

_"Let down."_

_"!" She backed him into the supply pile, he had nowhere else to go. The blade impaled him, but she had missed hitting any of his internal organs. It hurt and he was bleeding out, but as long as he contained the bleeding it was not fatal._

_"By the people all around me."_

_She pulled the blade out, coming close to him for a second to let the chain loosen around his wrist due to the lack of tension to it. It slipped off and onto the ground, freeing her from it as she took a step back._

_"Who the hell are you, bitch?!" The last guy growled, coming behind her as saw it as an opening. Ready to hit her in the back of her head and bring her down while she wasn't ready._

_But she was ready for him. Letting more of her chain fall onto the ground, she swung it low and dripped him by the leg as the chain wrapped around him and yanked. While he was on the floor she looked down upon him, letting the fear sink in to him for a second before straddling his stomach and started bombarding his face with punches._

_"Let down, let down_

_And I wipe my own tears away."_

_She continued to punch him, not relenting even as he cried and his face became a bloody pulp. The boys watching from the window almost thought she was going to kill him, and it terrified them._

_"Little girl cries to heaven_

_Enclose me in your grace."_

_The guy's blood was starting to stain her Ocean Hoodie, but that didn't stop her. She kept on punch, the chain rattling around her body as she moved._

_"W-wait, Stop, Please!" He begged. But she just sang louder. "Ah! Dammit, where the hell are the others!"_

_"Let down, let down_

_By the people all around me_

_And I reached out for heaven's warm embrace."_

_"P-please! If its money you want, I pay you whatever you want!"_

_"Let down, let down_

_And wipe my own tears away."_

_"...?" Her fists were slowing down, she was relenting. Her song had returned to a calm._

_"Little girl cries to heaven_

_Enclose me in your grace."_

_She had brought her bloodied fist to her side as her song came to a stop. She waited until her breathing calmed before getting back up on her feet again. The man beaten to a pulp below her, too tired to even move, flinched at the sound of her chain as it slides with her movement._

_"Who... are you?" He coughed out with his blood._

_"Someone you were foolish enough to steal from." She stated matter-a-factly. "The criminals of the Branch must have gotten bold to actually steal from one of the four Riders' turf."_

_"!" His only good eye had widened at the news. "I-It can't be! You're one of them? What's a member of the Riders doing behind the wall?!"_

_"We're everywhere. Business tends to make us that way." She said before pressing her foot on his chest and pressing down a little. "And you guys just so happened to steal from Famine's business. Whether unknowing or not, it was still stupid to steal from another gang. It's asking to start a turf war. One that you can't win."_

_"Gah!" He grunted in pain as she pressed down harder, making it harder to breath._

_"It only took me to take down your own gang, from the top floor to the bottom. Just imagine what would've happened if the whole gang got involved." She lectured to the man under her. Whether he was the leader of this gang or not, she didn't care, he was just the messenger. "We have our ways of getting in through the Walls, you would 'NOT' be safe."_

_"F-Famine? Are you..." He grunted, wiggling under her foot to try and get some air in. He began to shake as he saw her purple eyes through the darkness of her hood. "Are you '_the' Famine?"

_"Heh, I was." She smirked at his question before lifting her foot off of him. "But I gave that title up to someone else."_

_"What ever we've done to wrong you, I swear... we did not know." He was practically pleading to her as he followed her movement with his eyes as she moved around the parking lot._

_"Oh I know. That's why I'm going to let you live. But if you repeat this offense again..." She growled out the last part, swinging her chain in the air making him flinch at the mere sound of it before letting it wrap around her waist. "I will hang you."_

_"O-okay! Okay!" He nodded in terrified understanding, trying to appease her temper. Shōkan moved over to were the supply pile was, grabbing the pulley of the moving-cart she began to drag it away. _

_"I'm taking back what you've stolen from us." But then she stopped, going back to the pile she grabbed two random sack-bags in each of her hands before dragging the moving-cart again. "Plus interest." _

_"Okay, okay! Take whatever you want!" The bloodied man pleaded with her, begging her to practically go._

_"Oh I will. Nice doing business with you." She said, dragging her things out of the parking lot as she passed him. "If my affiliate tells me that you're giving him trouble again. I'll be back."_

_"!" Her affiliate, but she didn't tell them who that was. It could be anyone, they had stole from almost all of the Underworld lords that day._

_"You should think of other career choices, rethink your life. You guys live in the Wall, you don't have to act like this to survive. Oh, and you should probably clean yourself up." __Shōkan noted to him as if it wasn't an obvious thing. "You look terrible."_

_And she had walked out of the front entrance without a care in the world. Walking in the moonlight like there was nothing of it. Sprinkles of blood splattered on her face and her hands soaked in it, as it dripped from her knuckles onto the bag. The streets where dangers at night in the Outer Ghettos, but she was considered more dangerous as the darkness of the streets left her alone._

_She had walked all the way back to the area Mole was. He was working on a cigarette from his spot on the wall, with a bottle of some strong alcohol in the other. Smiling where he leaned as he saw her coming toward him._

_"Well done, I knew you still had it in you." He praised to her as the light from the cigarette showed the grin in his eyes._

_"Here, I got you extra." She said, tossing him the sack-bags as well._

_"Ooh, you're quiet the bargain hunter. You haven't changed much at all."_

_"I'm hoping that I have changed." __Shōkan corrected him. "Better than what I was."_

_"Ugh, if you say so. I rather liked the old you." The Mole commented with a shrug, scratching the back of his head. "You always kept things so 'flashy'."_

_"It doesn't matter, I got back what you were looking for."_

_"Yeah but you haven't found what 'you' were looking for, huh?" The Mole questioned knowingly._

_"!" Her eyes shot wide open in shocked before they slanted in stern warning. "If you know where he is, then tell me."  
_

_"I don't." The Mole honestly answered with a shrug, turning his back to her. "But..."_

_"But?" She wasn't in any mood to play games with him, if he had information or not he needed to spill it out or shut up. He had wasted enough of her time, she was already late reporting back to the Den as it is. But he turned his head back to her, grinning at her as he looked at her from the side._

_"I know somebody who does." She could see the excited gleam in his eyes at knowing something she didn't. "Someone who actually escaped from 'his' clutches and lived. Someone just like your nii-san."_

_"?!" Now he had her interested. "Tell me where he is!"_

_"Where 'she' is." The Mole corrected. "She actually lives here in the Outer Ghetto, hiding in broad daylight. You can find her, that is... if your not scared of venturing into the Red Light District."_

_"Tst, such places have become a mere candle of what they once were. That's one thing the Aragami did good about." __Shōkan huffed, waving his deterrence. From seemingly out of nowhere, she took off her Ocean Hoodie. Swiping off the blood on her face and hands with it before tossing it on the ground. Snatching the cigarette out of the Mole's mouth, she slicked it onto her hoodie and let it catch on fire, feeding the flames with some of the alcohol she had snatched from the Mole's other hand. Destroying all evidence of what she did that night as she watched it burn. She shoved the bottle back into the Mole's hands. "I'll go there on my next day of, just tell me where to go." _

_"Heh, fine. When you get there, look for a place called the 'Alluring Siren'. Going in, ask for the Geisha. She won't make her appearance out in the open unless she trusts you. Tell her guards the Mole sent you if you must, just don't do anything stupid. She's more powerful than you think." _

_"If she's anything like my nii-san, I know she is."_

"And that's when we headed back..." Soma said, ending his story. The others had gone disturbingly silent as his story went on, only to leave them with a room of tension after he was finished.

"... Have you told anyone about this yet?" Yuu question, finally breaking the stifling silence.

"No."

"Good. Just... send a report about the location you found in the morning. We'll have to deal with Shōkan on our own." Yuu instructed before turning to Alisa. "Alisa, did you see anything in Shōkan's Resonance that could give a clue about who she is or who she is looking for."

"No, it was only a glimpse of when she was a child. I think I might have seen her sister, but I saw no man in a white lab-coat."

"What did the area look like?"

"L-like the wasteland, but far off. I mean really far off, I don't even think we've been sent on missions in that area before."

"I see..." Yuu entwined his fingers together under his chin as he thought of their next move. "We'll have to do some... checking up before we do anything else. See what we can find out about this 'Riders' gang, perhaps we can search for what we need in NORN. Maybe there's more to Shōkan than we think... we should find her file as well..."

*** The Next Day ***

There had been a awkward silence between the team as they took down a Fallen Kongou in the City of Mercy that morning. Kota and Alisa were weary of Shōkan throughout the whole mission, Soma wouldn't let his guard down around her. But she didn't seem to notice or mind as they finally took down the target.

"Ahh, I feel better." She sighed out, relaxing her hold on her God Arc. "I was beginning to miss fighting the Aragami yesterday."

"!" Kota and Soma flinched at her words, holding in a gasp of breath so as not to alarm her. If anything she was dangerous, and they didn't want her to react violently if she found out they knew that.

"Not gonna die tonight

We're gonna stand and fight forever!"

"!" Her ring tone caught them off guard as she huffed in annoyance.

"Err, why the hell is she calling me now?!" Shōkan grunted before picking up her phone.

"Don't close your eyes!"

"What?! What do you want, I'm real busy right now!" Shōkan barked into the phone, but suddenly her eyes widened and she instantly mellowed down. "Oh no baby, I'm not yelling at you... No, no, no, shh, don't cry. I'm not angry, come on, stop those whines... It's just how I talk to your mommy, it's a sister thing... Well where is she, why are you using her phone? ... No, no, sweetie, I glad to hear your voice. I'm just a little surprised, is all... Did you get my gifts?... You did?! All right! Oh, I'm glad you like it... Tell your mommy and daddy to make sure nothing's missing, or I'm gonna have to bust some heads (chuckle)... No, sweetie, I'm not being a bully. I'm only joking... Look, Angel cakes, now is not a good time to talk. Can you call me later?"

"..." The others stared at her odd conversation to a mysterious person on the phone. Whoever it was had Shōkan fluttered and flipped from her usual rough character as she started to look cute. Blushing and slightly embarrassed about having this conversation around others. She would occasionally look up at the others before quickly looking back down to the ground, turning redder in the cheeks as she turned to the side.

"Okay, great, talk to you later..." But then her eyes bulged as the person on the other line said something that made her blush like a fever. She nervous turned to look at the others before crouching down and covering her phone with her hand as she mumbled a whisper. "I love you too."

She hung up quickly and put her phone away like it was on fire. Busying herself with extracting the Aragami's core to distract herself from their staring eyes.

"Who was that?" Soma question sternly, crossing his arms as if to say he wouldn't take no for an answer.

"That was uh..." She began to blush brighter, wiggling around in embarrassment as she pulled out her God Arc.

"Well come on, spit it out."

"That was my niece." She covered her face with her hands in shyness as a goofy smile came over her face.

"Your niece?" Kota had to raise an eyebrow at that.

"Yup! I sent her some presents yesterday, so she called to thank me." Shōkan happily cheered with a sweet smile. "She's such a good girl. But I'll have to be careful next time to make sure it's my sister on the line and not her..."

"..." Kota and Soma seemed conflicted at the mention of yesterday.

"You seem a little more rough with your sister than her." Alisa commented in slight confusion of how she treated the two.

"Oh that's just the way we are." Shōkan waved her off. "She would get worried if I didn't treat her that way."

"Your family is... weird."

"Hehaha ha-ha, aren't we all?" Shōkan retorted back at her.

"Some more than most..." Soma shot back.

"Heh, true." Shōkan shrugged off, before walking ahead to the Starting Point. "Now let's head back. We've got a whole day ahead of us."

"..." The others watched as she went on ahead before falling a good distance behind. They were at a crossroad about the rookie now. She was rough on the edges, she was wild, and clearly a beast in a fight based on what they had seen so far from yesterday. But at the same time, her actions had ceased the suffering of many seen and unseen. And it wasn't like she started a fight just because she wanted to, she had a cause and reason. She wasn't black nor was she white, she was gray...

*** Author's Notes ***

The long song was 'Let Down' by Imperia

And the ring tone was a clip from 'Not Gonna Die' by Skillet


	13. Chapter 13

Missing Soldiers

Morning had come once again with a new day, and Yuu was on his way up the elevator to see what missions he had for today. But as he was going up, the elevator had stopped around the Rookie's Floor, opening for Karen to hitch a ride as well.

"Good morning, Yuu-dono. Are you feeling better from yesterday?" Karen questioned, remembering that he wasn't feeling well in the stomach.

"Morning, Karen. Thanks for the concern, I am now. How was your night?" Yuu greeted starting small talk.

"It will have to suffice."

"You didn't get enough sleep?"

"No, my mind was uneasy. I feel that my body is trying to warn me of something."

"Hm, let's hope not. Perhaps you've just been working too hard and your body is on overdrive."

"Hn, it's a possibility." Karen ended the conversation there, not wanting to discuss such matters with someone who didn't really want to hear them. Her gut was telling her something, and it never lead her wrong.

And it had proven to be right as their elevator opened to the Entrance and the whole room was up in tension. Annette was devastated by the benches, Shun was pissed by the railings, and Gina was slightly distressed by the elevator.

"What a great idea they had..." Shun grunted sarcastically, slightly vexed. "Protect a Rookie and get lost themselves."

"Who got lost?" Yuu questioned to him in concern, but it was Gina who answered.

"Oh, morning, Leader. Things don't look too good right now. Kanon and Brendan didn't come back from their mission..."

"What?! They're still out there?" Yuu's heart began to quicken its pace as it started to happen again. He knew what happened when you went missing out there. You were in the Aragami's playpen now, once you were cut off from your team. The only hope you had was to hope that your items would hold out until someone found you, or take cover in a secured location. But out in the wasteland, nothing stayed secured for long.

"Did they lose contact around the Subway remains?" Shun prattled on to himself in frustration, frustration at what Karen did not know. "That place is so uselessly big and complicated...!"

"You should ask Annette for the details." Gina suggested since they weren't going to get anymore out of them.

"Right..." Yuu agreed, slightly crestfallen, before going down the stairs to speak to Annette who was sitting miserable on the benches. Careful of her delicate state right at the moment, Yuu approached her slowly before kneeling down to her level. She gasped as she noticed his presence in front of her.

"(Gasp) Yuu! Excuse me." She began to fluster herself into a panic as the tears started to return. "I-I have a favor to ask of you!"

"Calm down, calm down, Annette." Yuu soothed to her before she started to cry again. "Easy there, can you tell me what happened?"

"(Gulp) I went on a mission with my team, but an Aragami we've never seen before appeared in front of us, unexpectedly." She explained to him true watery eyes and a quivering lip. "Everyone else let me escape, but I... I didn't know what to do, and now..."

"Shhh, shh, easy now, easy."

"Please. Help me look for them!"

"Of course I will. Wipe those tears away and we'll be ready to go."

"Thank you so much!" She sniffled, wiping away the last tear while giving him a small smile. "I really appreciate this!"

"Hey, we're God Eaters." Yuu shrugged, placing a arm around her shoulder as he lead her to the Mission Elevator. "We look after each other."

"..." Gina and Karen watched as the two of them disappeared into the Mission Elevator to start their own Search Mission in the place of disappearance. "They're gone."

"So it would seem." Karen replied in agreement to Gina's comment.

"It's nothing important, I guess. I was going to test out my new scope, and maybe go search for the lost kids while I'm out there." Gina said, baiting Karen in, which was working.

"You don't even use scopes."

"Heh, that hasn't stopped me from going out to test how they look." Gina teased before trying to entice her cousin along again. "Do you want to come too?"

"!" Such a ridiculous, of course she already knew the answer. "Of course. I'm looking forward to showing you what I can do."

"(Chuckle) Very good." Gina gave her little cousin a small grin, before looking back over to Shun. "What about you? Want to come along?"

"!" Karen was a little displeased that she would invite that high-and-mighty jerk along for the mission. But if Gina wanted to bring her teammate along, how could she possible refuse her.

"No thanks, you girls have you're fun." Shun waved her offer off with sneer. "Me and the guys will bring those two idiots back."

"Suit, yourself." Gina was not at all offended by Shun's flat-out rude rejection and didn't skip a beat as she turned slightly to address Karen again. "Alright. Then let's get going."

"Hmph." Karen nodded in agreement, ready to head out.

"Wait!" Alisa called out to them, running up to them till she had to catch her breath once she reached them. "Kanon and the other are still missing, right? If it's okay with you, can I come along?"

"?"

"Losing a teammate is a tragic experience... I don't want Annette to have to go through that!"

"Alisa-senpai..." Karen was slightly taken aback by the passion Alisa had felt toward this. Of course a fellow comrade was missing and she wanted to help bring them home safely, but she felt so much more into this than just that. "I have no problem with you joining us. Is that alright with you, Gina-neesan?"

"Hmph, fine by me. The more bullets to fly, the merrier." Gina replied, agreeing for Alisa to come along.

"Thank you so much, you two!"

*** Infernal Subway ***

"Brendan! Kanon! Where are you!" Yuu hollered through the subway tunnels, hoping they would hear him.

"Brendan! Kanon!" Annette shouted out as well through the other tunnel way. "It's us! Please, come out!"

"Brendan!" Yuu tried again as they moved through the tunnel. "Kanon!"

"They're not answering..." Annette announced crestfallen.

"I don't think they're here anymore." Yuu predicted, making inhale a breath in fear at the conclusion as to why they weren't 'here' anymore.

"Oh don't you worry. This place is a horrible place to be in, I'm sure they moved to a more safer spot." Yuu tried to assure to her before Annette went into a panic again.

"R-right..."

ROAR

"(Gasp)!"

"Sounds like all our shouting attracted a Molten Gboro." Yuu concluded as he heard the wobbling steps coming closer to them. Getting into an offensive stance, Yuu readied his God Arc for a fight. "Let's finish it off and go looking some more."

*** Forgotten Carrier ***

"Your shots are good." Gina praised to her little cousin as they both fired at the Tezcatlipoca's head while Alisa stayed low, attacking its chest armor. "You're quite brilliant with your God Arc."

"Gina-neesan is far more superior." Karen replied back to her compliment with a compliment of her own.

"(Chuckle) I'm sure you didn't come out here just to flatter me." Gina teased a little at Karen. "Show this Aragami what a Dickinson is made of. I want to see lots of lovely flowers in bloom."

Just as she said that, Karen let out a shot that had knocked off the Tezcatlipoca's crown armor off.

"Lovely," Gina moaned to herself in awe at the blood that exploded out of the armor as it came off.

"Turn on?" Karen joked around with her older cousin, earning a smirk from the older female on the team.

"Ooh, indefinitely."

"I gotcha." Karen taunted at the colossal Aragami as she shot off its missile pods. Smirking as the Tezcatlipoca stepped back from the impact, wailing out like a siren and an elephant mixed together. "And to think you were gonna ruin our fun by inviting Shun along."

"..." The smirk of Gina's face started to fade. "Why do you despise that boy so much? The boy can be unbecoming at times, but that shouldn't be a means for hate."

"He's a pompous jerk and I'd rather not deal with him if I can help it." Karen answered, before rolling out of the way with Gina as the Tezcatlipoca came charging through, wildly firing missile all over its path. "He's too egocentric for me to handle."

"I think it's more than that." Gina called her out. "There's some other reason you're not telling me."

"There's nothing to discuss worth hiding." Karen grunted, Gina was starting to hit a sore spot.

"Oh I believe there is." Gina insisted, not backing down even with a colossal Aragami stomping a storm around them.

"Tst." Karen huffed as she rolled out of the way as the Tezcatlipoca came jumping down at her, almost crushing her under its track-like legs.

"What is it? Tell me."

"He abandoned me!" Karen barked out, admitting one of her deepest aches as she took out her raw opened emotions out on the Tezcatlipoca. Her shouted alerted Alisa to the conversation in concern as Karen changed into Blade-mode and took out the Tezcatlipoca's chest armor. "When everything was taken from me, he left me there to clean up the mess by myself!"

"..." Gina remained silent as she let Karen rant on, Alisa stayed quiet in shock. She didn't know what to say in this situation. Karen had always seemed so calm and strong, an impenetrable fortress. To see her in such a distress and torn down state was something she would never believe could happen, nor was she prepared for it when it did happen.

"I couldn't cry! I couldn't cry about anything that had happen that day, I had to stay strong because I knew I had to be strong from that day forth because I was on my own! He did nothing to help, I had to help myself! So I see no need to accept him back just because he so happens to have stumbled back into my life! He's too late, I not waiting for him anymore!"

"To be fair, in that mindset I technically abandoned you too." Gina pointed out.

"!" Karen had calmed down a bit, her swings had lost their drive. But she had gotten her OP back up. Jumping back as the Tezcatlipoca decided to jump into the air, she changed back into Gun-mode at a safe distance as she waited for the Texcatlipoca to come back down. "No, Gina-neechan... I didn't mean it like that. I know that times behind Fenrir walls were hard. Your families had already invited me to stay with them, regardless if they already had a full house. But I didn't want to be a burden... I could take care of myself, so I rented an apartment with my inheritance. Even still, my uncles and aunts still came every now and then to check on me. Even you wrote to me, and sent me things to help keep me going. But Shun... he did nothing. For all he cared, I didn't exist."

"You established your independence at a young age. We understood that and respected that." Gina reasoned with Karen. "But Shun had never abandoned you."

"Hmph, no need to fib on his behalf. I survived more than well with the money and supplies you constantly gave me." Karen began to warm up at the memory. "They helped keep me going when times got hard."

"What are you talking about? I sent you the supplies, but Shun was the one who sent you the money."

"?!" It was like a wall of ice had broken inside of Karen. "N-nani...?"

"Shun was the one who constantly sent you the money allowance. Always making sure you got it each week by shoving it in with my mail." Gina explained, clearing the fog behind the glass for Karen. "Even as a Gods Eater, he made sure to send that allowance to you, always making sure he got the missions with the good pay just for that. He kept sending them to you until you joined the Den."

"..."

"I won't lie, Shun can be such an asshole sometimes. But he's like a pineapple, hard on the outside but sweet on the inside."

"Actually he's more like a peach." Alisa corrected Gina. "Although he looks like a but on the outside, he's pretty sweet on the inside."

"(Chuckle) Either way, we're not giving the poor boy much flattery." Gina waved it off as she turned back to Karen.

"..."

"So... what are you going to do now?" Gina pondered to her.

"Hmph." Karen took the final shots at the Tezcatlipoca, not forgotten turning the girls private conversation, taking head shots that took the Aragami down. "Do what I always do... clean up the mess."

"Heh, good girl." Gina praised to her, patting her lightly on the head like she use to do when they were kids. "But it looks like the two lost children are not here. Oh what a pity, I guess we'll have to head back to look for more clues..."

*** Meanwhile back at the Den ***

"What took you so long?" Shun complained in impatience as Tatsumi had finally decided to show up. The afternoon was already almost gone, and the sun was going down. It hadn't taken him as long to get Karel to tag along like it usually did, but Tatsumi was making the time gained from that pointless as he spent more than all of it talking with Hibari. "This isn't the time to flirt, our team is still out there."

"I wasn't flirting." Tatsumi said serious, slightly peeved that Shun would think he would mess around at a time like this. "I was trying to track down their Bio-Signals with Hibari."

"Hmpf..." Shun mumbled out, crossing his arms as he looked away from Tatsumi. He wouldn't admit that he was wrong, but he wouldn't fight to prove that he was falsely right.

"We were able to pick up one of their signals at Aegis. Seems like they split up, one of their signals is being blocked." Tatsumi explained to his team. "Let's head to Aegis and bring them back. But there have been reports of a Dyaus Pita and Cocoon Maidens in that area, so be on your guard."

"Heh, well that doesn't sound good." Karel commented in slight sarcasm as he cupped his fingers under his chin in thought. "Can we get anyone else to accompany us."

"Everyone else is already out searching." Tatsumi answered in slight disappointment at the news to. "It looks like it'll be just us-"

"Ooh a briefing!" Shōkan cooed in excitement, wrapping an arm around Tatsumi's shoulder. "Hey, Tatsumi. Where's the party at?"

"Didn't you hear, kid? Brendan and Kanon went missing." Karel huff in disbelief that she would be living under such a rock that she hasn't heard the news going around the Den yet.

"Mr. Robot and Ms. Spitfire are missing? Get out." Shōkan huffed in disbelief, but they didn't change the looks on their face as if this was a joke. "Oh God you're serious. Well then, what are we waiting for?! Do you have an idea where they are?"

"!" The guys' eyes widen in surprise at her immediate volunteer to rescue their teammates. From what they heard from Kota, she didn't get along well with Kanon.

"I thought you didn't like Kanon?" Karel pointed out. "Why would you want to help her?"

"!" Shōkan had a look of appall that he would even ask her that. "We had a little spat, it's under the bridge now. I wouldn't abandon a comrade over something like that, that's just foolish and petty. Besides, she can't disappear... she the only person in the Den that makes me want to hug'er and strangle'er all at once in random swings. My God, it's such a rush!"

"Uh..." Tatsumi didn't have anything to say to that, it was just weird.

"Regardless, you can't tag along." Shun rejected her subtle request to join them. "We don't have time to babysit rookies. Run along, brat, the big kids got things to do."

"You went on missions with Karen." Shōkan pointed out, earning a chuckle from Karel as she called Shun out on his bluff. Making him fluster as if he had been caught contradicting himself.

"S-she's different!" He weakly defended. "She can handle herself."

"As can I." Shōkan said with determination. "Let me show you what I can do. I'll make sure you won't regret bringing me along."

"..." Karel and Shun couldn't find anything to say debut her statement, the fire in her purple eyes had made their minds go blank to any witty retort.

"Looks like we have our four wheel, now. Good show, Shōkan." Tatsumi praised her in gratitude, giving her around a small shake with the roll of his shoulder before getting out of her arms grip. "Alright, let's move out!"

*** Aegis Island ***

"Ms. Spitfire, come out and plaaay." Shōkan called out through the arena, tapping her God Arc on the floor to get that ringing bang sound to echo out.

They had just taken care of the Dyaus Pita and the Cocoon Maidens, making the area clear for search. The fellas had never seen another Gods Eater fight like her before, let alone a girl. Her power was raw and rough, but not in that untrained way, it was more like watching a strategic beast. She would meet the Aragami head on without any signs of fear, while having nothing against fighting dirty just to make sure she'd win. Shun could actually respect that kind of fighting style in their line of work, and Karel couldn't help but admire it.

To knee a Dyaus Pita in the jaw, that took some guts.

But now, the rookie was showing even more weird characteristics as she would tap the tip of her God Arc to the ground and occasionally sniff the air.

"How do you know that it's even Kanon hiding here?" Karel pondered her logic.

"Cause I can smell the fragrant smell of gunpowder and bubblegum shampoo." Shōkan stated her reasoning, by mention the guys were able to pick of the subtle scent as well. "She's here, but she's most likely hiding."

"Obviously," Shun shot back sarcastically, rolling his eyes as she stated the obvious. "But where?"

"Somewhere... safe..." Shōkan said with a wondering tongue as she looked around the area as she crossed off possible hiding spots by process of elimination. She kept looking around until she spotted the closed off elevator that once lead into the Den's basement, on a high platform. "There! ... Probably."

"Hn, let's check it out." Karel suggested, readying his God Arc as they ran over to the platform. Jumping up just to reach it. The elevator doors seemed to be sealed shut from the inside, that would've been nothing note worthy since the doors were sealed long before, but they looked like they were blasted open from the outside. Meaning, that someone was trying to get in.

"Let's man power it open." Tatsumi ordered as him and Shun worked to pry the doors open, one to each door. "Kanon, are you in there!"

"Ah!" A panic cry came out of the elevator before a mortar shot out from the inside and blasted the guys onto their butts.

"Yup... she's in there, alright." Karel confirmed with a smirk as he watched his fellow teammates comically land on their asses.

"S-stay back, please... I don't taste good." Kanon shakily beg as fear consumed her. In her raised anxieties, she had thought the Aragami had broken through.

"Whoa, calm down, Kanon." Shōkan called out to her, popping out her head from the corner of the elevator door for cover as she waved her hands up by means of showing she meant no harm. "It's just us."

"!" Kanon's senses returned, lowering her God Arc as she recognized her teammates and Shōkan. "Everyone... you found me..."

She couldn't believe it, she thought she was going to die out in this wretched wastelands. To disappear and no one would care. She had always felt like she was the burden of her unit, always misfiring at her teammates during missions. Her unit had found some charm to her quirks, but some of the members openly stated their displeasure at her terrible shot. Namely Shun, Soma, and that new rookie, Shōkan. To see that Shun and Shōkan had went out of their way to not only search for her but find her made a warm spark light up inside her. She was almost going to cry by the feel of it, but they would probably mistake those tears for pain judging by the damage done to her by her team's mysterious Aragami.

"Of course we'd come for you, stupid." Shun huffed to her, his voice had its usual snark to it, but his eyes showed concern as he noted the open wound on her side still bleeding. "What, did you think we were going to leave you out here for Aragami chow?"

"I thought... I thought you didn't like me."

"Pfft, I don't like your shots. You can't hit the broad side of a barn." Shun insensitively stated, making her flinch at the criticism. "But I've got nothing against you as a person."

"!" She was startled as he bent down to pick her up and lift her onto his back. "No, Shun. Your jacket... I'll get blood all over it."

"Heh, you can always buy me a new one when you get better." He waved off as he began taking the first few steps out of the elevator and into the lighted area of Aegis and the Moon's light.

"Hey, Cookie Bomb, how're you holding up?" Shōkan asked her in concern with a gentle cross between a tap and a slap on the strawberry blonde's back.

"I-I'll be okay..." She shyly answered, hiding her blush in the back of Shun's jacket. "I don't understand... why are you all helping me?"

"?!" They all got concerned that she would even ask that question.

"Wouldn't it... wouldn't be better for the team if I did disappear...?" Her depressing words were soon interrupted as Shun jousted her out of her darkening thoughts with a slight jump. "Ouch."

"Shut up, idiot, the loss of blood has made you dumb." Shun grunted at her.

"?!"

"Nobody gets left behind, Kanon. God Eaters look after each other." Tatsumi said to her with encouragement. "And you're part of our team, we need you just as you think you need us."

"You've got a talent of being a luck charm on the battlefield." Karel informed with a smirk, as if stating one of her positive traits. "I get rarer Aragami parts whenever I bring you along. If you disappeared, so would half my paycheck."

"You've got a fire to you, Kanon. One that I could appreciate." Shōkan commented as well, trying rely to Kanon she had nothing against her. "I would miss that if you suddenly faded away."

"... Everyone... thank you..." She had relaxed onto Shun's back and closed her eyes as stray tears escaped from them.

"Kanon? Kanon?!" Shun called out to her in concern as she suddenly had went quiet behind.

"She's okay." Shōkan assured him as she checked Kanon's pulse. "She's just really, really tired."

"She's still losing a lot of blood." Tatsumi confirmed. "We gotta get her back to the Sick Bay."

"Heh, got it." Karel acknowledge, as he readied his God Arc to help cover Shun with the others. "Then let's run."

*** Back at the Den ***

Yuu had finally returned to the Den's Entrance with Annette after a long search through the Infernal Subway tunnels that had come up empty handed. Annette was starting to lose hope at finding her teammates, going silent as the guilt of leaving them behind was starting to gnaw on her.

"I don't know what to do anymore..." Annette admitted, crestfallen. "I can't find them..."

"We will find them, Annette." Yuu comforted to her, wrapping a caring arm around her shoulder while his other hand guided her other arm as he lead her to sit down by the benches on the lower level. "Keep your chin up."

"Alright, I'll do everything I can..." Annette tried to give a small smile, but the words were not really as meaningful.

"Don't worry, I'll do something about this." Yuu assured to her with a determination. With that fire in his eyes, how could she not believe that he would bring her team back home.

"Thank you... I'll keep trying."

"Rest for now, I'll keep looking for them in the mean time." Yuu instructed to her, putting his hands in his pockets as he went back up the stairs. Some was sitting on the couch in the Lounge Area, just recently returning from Extermination Mission. "Yo."

"Hey, how's the search?"

"Not too good, we've been coming up empty handed." Yuu sighed out in exhaustion, running a hand through his hair. "But I'll keep searching. I'll find those guys, no matter what."

"Hmph, knowing you, I believe that." Soma smirked with crossed arms.

"Right, sorry about leaving all the missions to the rest of you guys."

"The First Unit can handle most of these normal missions. You can prioritize the search for Lindow and the other two. Show them what a Leader can do..."

"Heh, right." Yuu couldn't help but give a cheeky grin to Soma at that comment. This was once the guy that wouldn't even trust Yuu to have his back or follow him as a Leader, and now he was acknowledging his strength. Time sure was an amazing thing.

But that was when Tatsumi and the others had came back with Kanon in tow.

"!" Soma and Yuu shot up in alarm at the tired and daze state Kanon appeared to be on Shun's back as she continued to bleed into his jacket.

"We found Kanon!" Shun announced as he rushed to the elevator.

"We need a sickbed ready and a medic ready at the Sick Bay, stat!" Tatsumi ordered out.

"Kanon?! What happened?! Where did you guys find her?" Yuu asked in concerned as he cleared a path for them to the elevator and open the doors for them to get in.

"We found her on Aegis Island." Shōkan informed to her leader. "Whatever Aragami it was that did this to her, it must have a powerful strike."

"What do you mean?" Soma question her reasoning as the doors to the elevator was closing with her in it and Yuu and Soma out of it.

"The bruising caused on the wound couldn't have been made by an Aragami claw, needle or form of weapon, or a bite for that matter. It has the bruising as if something had 'hit' her."

"?" They pondered her words as the doors finally closed. But their was a small relief out of all of this. They had gotten one of them back, injured but still back alive. Now there was only one left still out there. Yuu was about to go down to the Sick Bay and question Kanon for clues when Hibari had called to him from the Mission's Desk.

"We've got an abnormality detected at Aegis Island! An unknown Aragami has appeared in the area. Judging by the description from the Scouting team, it's possibly the same Aragami that attack Brendan and Kanon." Hibari announced to him. "The First Unit is to immediately detain and dispatch the target."

"Tst, just what we needed." Yuu growled in slight frustration at the Aragami that dared attack his comrades. "I'll gather my team immediately. Soma, load up, I'm going to gather the others."

"Right." Soma nodded to him before heading into the Mission Elevator to get his God Arc.

Yuu had went into the elevator and made a small detour to the Lab Floor, to give Kanon a quick visit in the Sick Bay. Tatsumi, Shun, and Karel had already left once they made sure she was okay before going out again to look for Brendan. Leaving only Shōkan there to sit by Kanon's bedside as she served as a comforting presence to the crestfallen strawberry blonde. Her wound had been patched up, bleeding stopped, and the color returning to her skin. But her eyes still had that dull pain in them, telling of an inner conflict going on inside her head.

"Hey, girls."

"Yuu-kun, hi..." "Hey, Boss." They both greeted in response, Shōkan giving him a small wave while Kanon gave a weak nod of the head.

"Kanon..." Yuu called to her, taking the second visitor's seat by her sickbed. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"..."

"I know you just got back, and your wounds are still fresh. But... I need to know what we are up against. Brendan is still out there, and your information may be able to help us bring him back."

"... We were ambushed by this blue Aragami we've never seen before. After we let Annette escape, we put up a fight for a while, but we began losing so Brendan said he'd be bait..." Her mood began to darken as she lowered her head. "I always talk about doing my best... But I'm powerless, and I end up relying on somebody..."

"Of course you do, you're human, we all do that." Yuu reasoned with her. "Everybody needs somebody to rely on to survive. That's why our species has survived this long on this planet, we look out for each other. Don't sell yourself short because you are doing what everybody has been doing since birth."

"..."

"You're still recovering, rest." Yuu instructed, getting back up on his feet, giving her a reassuring smile as he got out of his seat. "Me and the others will bring Brendan back for you."

"..." She tried to smile at him, but the smile wasn't reaching her face.

"Don't worry, Cookie Bomb." Shōkan said to her, tapping Kanon's shoulder with a grin. "I'll stay by your side until you get better."

"No!"

"?!" Both Shōkan and Kanon stared at Yuu in surprise by his sudden outburst. Calming himself, he tried to cover his tracks.

"Uh, I need you in the front-line for this Aragami, Shōkan. I'll send for Karen to check on Kanon while we're gone."

"Uh, sure, okay." Shōkan responded in slight confusion. Where had that earlier out burst come from? He could've just asked her to come along. Perhaps he was overly excited on getting revenge on the Aragami that had hurt his comrades.

But Shōkan was only half right. In reality... Yuu just didn't trust her alone with Kanon while she was injured. Shōkan was an unknown threat to them, and more of a loose cannon than Kanon ever was. Could that truly trust someone they did not truly know? Yuu could not afford to blindly put trust in those of the unknown, he had did that once and it had cost him two of friends, almost more...

*** Aegis Island ***

After Yuu had went to grab Alisa along for the mission as well, the team had left to find the mysterious Aragami on Aegis.

"Funny, I just got done taking care of some Aragami in this area with Tatsumi, Shun, and Karel only a few hours ago. It's like I'm cleaning up a mess in an area I just cleaned." Shōkan joked aloud to herself.

"Tch, the Aragami are monsters that are attracted by the smell of their own dead." Soma grunted out to her. "It must have been attracted by the smell of rotting meat."

"Ew, that sounds charming." Shōkan said in sarcasm.

"Focus you two, it's coming." Alisa announced to them as the sound of stomping came closer on the other side of Aegis.

"Yeah, I already know." Soma huffed back at her, tightening the grip of his God Arc as his eyes got that far-away look to them.

"Get ready, guys. Here comes Tsukuyomi." Yuu warned.

"Tsukuyomi?" Shōkan pondered at the odd choice of christening for this new Aragami. But then, when she saw its moonlight aura and elegant appearance, its divine-like halo, that's when she understood its name. "Now I understand... such a fitting name for one such as you."

"Careful, if it's anything like an Arda Nova, its appearance can be deceiving." Yuu cautioned to his team as the Tsukuyomi jumped down from its platform. "It could have world-devouring potential."

"**You fools!**" The Aragami taunted to them. Catching Shōkan off guard with its knowledge and ability to speak, before she simply put such curiosities aside and focused on the job at hand.

"Heh, you're the fool. Have you not learned anything from your sin of blood you have spilled against Uke Mochi?" Shōkan mocked at the Aragami with disdain. "Now you would dare try to add our friends' blood to your guilt underneath your pale moonlight?"

"Tst, it doesn't matter if its a Moon god or not." Yuu remarked before getting into battle mode. "It'll pay for messing with us God Eaters!"

*** Later that night-technically early morning- back at the Den ***

It had been awhile since Yuu had given Karen a text telling her to go check up on Kanon. She would've done it sooner, but she thought it would be for the best if Kanon got some time to rest, undisturbed. But when she went to the Sick Bay, Kanon was no where to be found. Slightly alarmed, Karen went to go check around the Veteran's Floor, she wasn't there. She went to go check the Training Grounds, still Karen wasn't there. When she had finally went up to the Entrance, that's when she found Kanon, standing by the lounge area as she looked over the railings to the lower floor.

"Kanon-dono, what are you doing up?" Karen questioned, a slight tone of concern detected in her voice as she approached Kanon, looking her over in worry. "You should be in bed, resting."

"No, it's find. Really, I'm okay. I feel a lot better now." Kanon nervously assured to Karen in shyness with flaying hands before calming down again. "But I, uh... I'm sorry I was acting all sad the other day. I've realized that all I can do is do my best."

"..." Karen stayed silent, waiting for Kanon to continue what she needed to say.

"So I am going to do my best, to do my best!" She said encouragingly to herself before her shyness caught the best of her again. She began to blush, kicking her foot around as her eyes couldn't make contact with Karen's for long. "So on that subject... may I please ask you to come with me to search for Brendan? The beacons point out the location, but I don't feel confident to get there myself."

"To lack confidence in yourself is to lack power in your actions, which will in turn lead to failure." Karen lectured to her in wise advisement. "You must trust in your own power. Whatever happens from now on, you stand firm and face what is thrown in your path without fear, but with courage. What awaits us down the path of life, no one knows, and nobodies going to give you a map. You've gotta walk your own path. I will walk alongside you down this road for now, but you must believe in yourself and create your own power. Don't be a failure."

"!" Her eyes opened as if she was suddenly wide awake, Karen's words had struck something. Her eyes began to water, but then she started to smile. "I... I'm, um, thank you so much! Every bit of my effort will go into this!"

"Hn, I know it will." Karen gave Kanon a small smile as she saw the fire return to her emerald eyes.

*** A half an hour later ***

"(Sigh) Oh, what a night." Yuu sighed on in exhaustion to his team as they were putting away their God Arcs in the Hanger.

"You mean what's left of it." Shōkan corrected. "I can't believe how long it took us to take that Aragami down."

"It couldn't be helped." Soma huffed out, placing his Buster Blade on its hanger. "That Aragami was stronger than it looked."

"Heh, you're telling me. I haven't been hit that hard since the time I told my sister she was getting fat." Shōkan chuckled.

"Hey, we all survived. Let's just focus on that and be grateful we delivered that Aragami some payback." Yuu commented, trying to stay on the positive side.

"Right," agreed Alisa with a nod. "Aside from a few bruises we still did pretty good."

"Still..." Shōkan groaned out as she stretched, popping her back in the process. "Shun and the others are going to be pretty upset that we stole the vengeance from them."

"Wah, really? You guys took out the blue Aragami? No fair!" Shun whined as he approached them, with Tatsumi and Karel, from the elevator.

"!" The team was startled from seeing the up so late, or so early at this point.

"Speak of the devil." Shōkan smirked.

"Shun? Guys? What are you doing up so late." Yuu questioned.

"Heh, as if we could rest long while one of our comrades is still out there." Karel huffed, brushing his bangs out of his face.

"Right, we still have our own to bring back." Tatsumi agreed with Karel before fully addressing the First Unit. "Now that you guys took care of that nasty blue Aragami, we'll take care of the search. We'll keep on looking until we get Brendan home safe."

"Hmph, good luck you guys." Yuu said to them in encouragement as he nodded in understanding.

"Hey, you wanna come along, Rookie?" Shun offered to Shōkan.

"What?" She had to quirk an eyebrow at his offer. "I thought you didn't like babysitting me."

"Ehh, that was before we saw what you could do." Shun shrugged off.

"It's been a while since I've seen such a lively style of fighting." Karel commented in agreement. "You've got strange taste. But I like you're style."

"Huh, thanks for the compliment." Shōkan laughed sarcastically, rubbing the back of her head. "Aw hell, it's not like I was going to go to sleep anyway. I'll tag along with you guys."

"Awesome!" Shun cheered.

"Okay, let's get started." Tatsumi chuckled in good spirit at getting another helping hand in the search mission.

"..." Alisa and the others watched as Shōkan grabbed her God Arc again and disappeared with the boys onto the Aircraft Hanger. "Do you think she'll be alright?"

"She'll be fine. One or two scratches, definitely." Soma teased with her smirk.

"Don't worry, it was her choice to go. She knows her own limit so she can handle herself." Yuu said to reassure Alisa's concerns. "For now, let's focus on recovering our own strength."

"Oh, you guys are sure back late." Called out Licca from the elevator, starting a new day of morning checkups on the God Arcs with a fresh cup of coffee as she noticed Yuu, Alisa, and Soma in the God Arc Hanger.

"Morning Licca, sorry, that Tsukkuyomi took longer than we thought." Yuu nervously chuckled, grinning at her as he rubbed the back of his head. "So how was your night?"

"Troublesome actually." Licca groaned out. "See, I can't get Lindow's Arc to stabilize anymore. It's in good shape... Maybe too good shape, maybe too good, actually. I wonder what's going on. It's like it's Resonating for some reason."

"Oh, that's not too good, huh?"

"No, not really. But it's not technically bad either. It's just... odd."

"Oh... Well, I'm gonna check on Kanon before I go to sleep."

"Kanon already left with Karen to search for Brendan in the City of Mercy." Licca explained to him. "We had picked up his Bio Signal there, they left to extract him not too long ago."

"What? Dammit!" Yuu grunted in concern. "Karen was suppose to be looking after her."

"Well, technically she still is."

"Save it, Soma." Yuu shot back at him. Tiredly running a hand along his face in exhaustion as he ask the universe why it kept screwing him over while he enter the Mission Elevator back up to the Entrance with his team. "(Sigh) Well... looks like I won't be sleeping tonight."

"?" Alisa and Soma stared at him as Yuu came up to an odd conclusion.

"I'm gonna stay up to make sure those two get back okay."

"Tst, don't be ridiculous. Those two will be fine." Soma grunted to him.

"He's right, Kanon is in good hands with Karen." Alisa tried to reason with Yuu. "You need your sleep, Yuu. As Leader of the Unit, you have to be in top condition."

"Yeah, but... I honestly can't sleep knowing that Kanon is out there with those fresh wounds still healing." Yuu tiredly admitted as he rubbed the back of his neck. "You guys go ahead and rest, I'm staying up until they get back."

"Hmph, if you're going to do something stupid like this, I guess I'll join you to make sure you don't get carried away." Soma huffed out as if he didn't care, while poorly hiding his concern over his leader under his macho front.

"No, Soma, no. Go to sleep I'll be fine." Yuu insisted to his teammate, sitting down tiredly onto the couch in the Lounge area. "Beside..."

"?" They both looked a Yuu curiously as he turned his head to look at the row of Terminals.

"It'll give me time to... do some research on Shōkan."

"..."

"In that case, I'm definitely staying up with you." Soma informed, not yielding to anything Yuu said otherwise. "I wanna see who this rookie really is just as much as you do."

"..." Yuu stared into Soma's unwavering blue eyes, this guy was stubborn to the end. "(Sigh) Alright, maybe two pairs of tired eyes is better than one."

"Well, goodnight Yuu-kun, Soma. Let me know what you find in the morning." Alisa said, waving them goodnight before heading into the elevator for her room.

"Yeah, sure thing..."

*** Sunrise at the City of Mercy ***

"I'll reduce you to a hunk of meat!" Kanon taunted at the Prithivi Mata as she fired destructive mortars into is face. Her aim was good, especially when she didn't have a Gods Eater around to misfire at as Karen stayed in the back to take sniper shots on the raised platform by the church. She laid on the platform, its cool medal soak its temp into her body, while she steadied her arm for the shot.

"Perish." Karen huffed at the Aragami as she went for head shots.

At last the she-beast had taken enough damage to kiss the dirt in eternal rest.

"You're full of wholes now!" Kanon happily giggled at the Aragami in cutely cruel mockery.

"Enough flaunting, check for Brendan's signal." Karen instructed while getting up and walking over to the fallen Prithivi Mata. Changing into Blade-mode, she extracted the core.

"Uh, right!" Kanon stutter, getting out of the self-glory of the moment. Her achievement over a personal mountain laid aside as she focused on finding Brendan. The tracker was pointing his signal to be close on the map. "He's close, like a few meters close..."

Kanon informed while walking forward, slowly passed the platform. Karen following behind her as Kanon's head refused to look up from her tracker on her armlet.

"He's close, I'm getting nervous..." She said, her heart accelerating as she was leading them through the walkway and into the building with the broken clock, forever stopped at 7:37. She began to sweat as his beam began to get big and pulsate faster, indicating that he was getting closer to them. Or in this case, they were getting closer to him. Kanon had stopped right in front of the clock. "I got him... the signal is coming from... six... feet?!"

"I'm over here..." A weak voice tiredly called out from their left, startling Kanon into making a little jump.

"!" Kanon had placed a hand on her frightened heart to calm it down, while Karen looked toward the voice, ready for anything.

They both had calmed in to a relief as they noticed it was Brendan, slouching down on the low raised platform, his back leaning against the wall. Mostly Brendan was trying to stay out of the line of sight for the area's Aragami as best he could. He looked so tired, and bleeding out. His smirk in humor at Kanon's little startle attack did nothing to take away attention from the blood leaking out all over him and from his mouth.

"Heh... you found me..." He lightly smirked in praise. "Good job, you two..."

"Brendan?! Say your breath." Kanon instructed to him in concern before firing a long Recovery emitter to him. "W-we've gotta get you to the Sick Bay, right away!"

"Heh, easy, Kanon. Panicking will not help to seal the wounds any sooner." Brendan lectured to her in his own way of easing her worries. "So... are you ready to head back."

"Yes... I'm sleepy." Karen announced as she took an arm from Brendan to support him on her shoulders.

"Heh, me too..."

"You're going to make it back alive today." Kanon assured to Brendan with determination, securing their 360 while Karen helped extracted Brendan out of the area. "Hey Brendan, guess what, I think I had few misses today!"

"Really? That's great..." Brendan praised to Kanon as she tried to distract him from his pain with small talk. But her words still rang with happy excitement, Brendan knew how much the improvement of her shots meant to Kanon. For her to actually feel that she had did good helping out with her shots, truly meant something to her. And he would let her have this.

"She has a good shot." Karen agreed with Kanon, giving her the praise she felt Kanon deserved. "It would have taken me longer to take down that Aragami without her."

"Really?" She gasped at Karen's words in awe, not believing she had actually got praise from a fellow Gods Eater on her team. Nearly crying when Karen nodded her head in confirmation. "Thank you! Thank you so much..."

"Let's go home."

"Right!"

*** Returning to the Den ***

The sun had already risen half an hour ago over the Den. And Yuu and Soma were still going through the Entrance Terminals. Black rings were decorated under their eyes from lack of sleep, but their sleepless night did bare fruit to their search. Using his clearance as First Unit Leader, Yuu was able to go in to deeper access to information that would be seen confidential information. At first Yuu didn't feel right abusing his power to look through Shōkan's personal files, but once he charged on through his inner conflicts he had found what he was looking for. And looking through the files what Yuu and Soma found out was a bit... disturbing.

"We've made it." Karen sighed out in relief as she helped carry Brendan into the Entrance from the Mission Elevator.

"Hurry, we gotta get him to the Sick Bay, right away." Kanon insisted, taking Brendan's other arm onto her shoulders to help speed up the process.

"!" Hearing the girls come back, Soma and Yuu immediately closed the tabs they brought up on NORN and covered their traces behind them as they quickly turned to face the girls.

"Ahh, good you guys are back. And you got Brendan too. Awesome!" Yuu praised to them. "Good job, girls!"

"Hmph, nothing to it." Karen huffed out.

"Although, Brendan needs help. If you boys will excuse us, we must get going." Kanon pushed of in farewell while practically dragging along Brendan and Karen into the elevator.

"Here, I'll help too!" Yuu volunteered as he jumped into the elevator with them. "You coming, Soma?"

"No thanks," Soma declined, going over to take a seat on the couch in the lounge area and crossing his arms as he rested his eyes. "There's still one more baggage still wondering around out there."

"Hmpf, suit yourself." Yuu shrugged off, closing the elevator doors at Soma's choice. The elevator ride down wasn't that much of a trip as they made it without any interruptions. Noticing the girls were tired as they started to slouch while dragging Brendan along to the Sick Bay, Yuu took Brendan's arm from Karen and started dragging him off of Kanon's shoulders. He was much faster than them and at the moment had more energy. "I can take care of the rest, you girls have done enough. Why don't you rest for now."

"But-"

"He's find, Kanon. You got him home." Yuu assured to her with a warm smile. "I'm sure Brendan wouldn't want you to tire yourself out."

"O-okay." Kanon finally complied as Yuu disappeared with Brendan behind the Sick Bay door. "..."

"Are you alright, Kanon-dono." Karen asked her as she noticed Kanon's eyes take a spaced-out look.

"You know... when you take a close look at things you can't do, you begin to see the things you can do. That's how it felt." Kanon began to confess. She placed a strong hand over her heart and closed it into a determined fist before turning back around to face Karen with a smile. "Thank you so much! I hope I can continue to rely on you and the others for certain things from now on too!"

"Hn, of course."

Meanwhile in the Sick Bay, Yuu was disinfecting and bandaging Brendan's wounds, the slight stink of the rubbing alcohol on his cuts kept Brendan awake.

"(Hiss)!"

"Sorry, dude. I can get you some Painkillers if you want?" Yuu offered to him in apology, he wasn't like Alisa or Sakuya when it came to things like this, he lacked the gentle touch.

"Heh, it's fine..." Brendan gave him a small smirk in no-hard-feelings, but it soon faded as a darkness started to cloud him. "The people here are all nice so they won't mention it, but I disgracefully came back from the Ark Project... And ever since, I've always wanted to make it up. That's why I took up the rear guard, and here I am. I was confident of living a smarter life."

"!" Yuu couldn't believe that Brendan was still feeling guilty about that. "God, Brendan, no. You just wanted to survive, like most of the others did too. Okay? You did nothing wrong."

"... Sorry, I sound like I'm complaining. I actually feel really good right now. This really is a nice work place..."

"Hm, yup, it's the kind of place and people I want to protect. And I can see you feel the same way too."

"Heh, I suppose I do." Brendan gave him a weak grin before drowsiness was starting to weigh him down. "Do you mind if I close my eyes for a while? I'm so very tired."

"Hmph, sure. We'll be here for you when you wake up." Yuu assured to him, backing away once he noticed that Brendan was asleep. Deciding that now would be a good time to get some shut-eye as well, he walked out of the Sick Bay and headed for his room. But as he was walking toward the elevator he crossed paths with Ren who was coming out of the elevator and heading for the Sick Bay. For a moment he thought that it was going to be a silent passing, but just when they were shoulder to shoulder...

"Everyone likes you, and they depend on you. And I also have no choice but to rely on you too..."

"?" Yuu turned his head to look at Ren for a second before he disappeared behind the Sick Bay door. What did he mean by that?

*** A couple of hours later ***

"Morning, Leader." Soma greeted to Yuu from the couch as he came out of the elevator. Alisa was hanging around with him, perhaps in slight concern for her teammate as it was already passed noon. Gina was hanging around them as well, although her reason differentiated from Alisa's.

"Morning. Are you still waiting?" Yuu couldn't believe that Soma hadn't gone to sleep yet.

"Yeah. It seems like those idiots have yet to return." Soma grunted out in annoyance, his finger clutching tighter into his arms on reflex.

"He's been up all night, and refuses to even take a nap." Alisa huffed in disapproval. "This can't be good for his body."

"Tst, I'll be fine. I've gone much longer without sleep before." Soma shot back at her, tired of her worry lectures before he changed to subject. "So how's Brendan doing?"

"He's fine now. Sleeping, but in a stable condition." Yuu announced, making his two other members breath out a sigh of relief.

"So Brendan's back too? Heh, the only one left is that directionally-challenged Lindow."

"We'll get to him sooner or later. But Annette must've been really relieved. She's been sleeping for a while now." Gina commented.

"You were feeling really relieved yourself with their return. You were practically the most worried out of everyone." Alisa called her out, seeing past Gina's smooth tone voice and constant expression.

"My heart felt like it was going to burst." Gina admitted with her normally toned voice, not giving away any expression on her face.

"(Giggle) I'm so glad Brendan was found too! Kanon and Annette would be relieved!" Alisa cheered in agreement with Gina, before a thought suddenly crossed her mind. "Wait... Didn't Tatsumi and them go out to search for Brendan earlier?"

"They're 'still' out there." Soma informed.

"Maybe they missed each other..."

"I'm sure they'll return to the Den soon. Hibari must have already informed them about Brendan's return through their communicators." Yuu tried to assure with Alisa.

"I've been waiting for those guys from the Third Unit, but I'm getting tired of waiting..." Gina said, a hint of concern could be detected in her voice.

"Shun and the others are gone?" Karen partially gasped out as she came in at the end of their conversation, walking away from the elevator as she approached the group at the lounge area with Kota tagging along as well.

"Yeah, they left to go look for Brendan with Shōkan apparently half an hour after we came back from that mission at Aegis." Alisa informed to her, getting Karen and Kota up to date on what was going on.

"?!" Karen didn't like that news at all. "But that was hours ago, more than six. Yuu-san, we have to look for them. Shun would never take this long with a mission, and Shōkan-san wouldn't waste this much of her time. Something is wrong."

"!" Yuu and the other First Unit members had never seen this much worry coated over Karen's usually controlled character, she was genuinely concerned. "Alright, we'll see what we can do."

"Now it's the Bozo Trio in danger?! Why do these things all happen at once...?" Kota complained in a huff. "Shun and Karel, huh... They were really mean to me when I was still a rookie. My motivation is so low..."

"Kota!" "Hey!" "Bad form." Yuu, Karen, and Gina practically barked at him at the same time.

"I'm kidding, it's not like I can't not call them mates. Soooo, we'll go help Tatsumi and Shōkan, and rescue the others while we're there!"

"Kota..." Yuu groaned out in disapproval of Kota's inappropriate timed joke, especially in front of Shun's family and teammates.

"Wait, are you guys going to extract Tatsumi and the others?" Annette asked coming from the stairway to the lower level from the left of them. "If it's okay with you, can you take me along too? I'll do my best!"

"Are you sure you're up to it. You just woke up." Yuu asked to make sure she was alright for this.

"I'm fine, I'm fully charge!" She said all pumped up. "Let help bring my team back."

"Heh, then fine. Better not burn anyone too much with that fire of yours, Annette." Yuu slightly teased at her with a grin.

"Thank you so much!"

"Hm, I guess it'll just be me, Kota, Karen, and Annette." Yuu concluded aloud to himself before facing the others. "You guys gonna be okay holding the fort?"

"Hmph, we'll stay on standby just in case they come back while you're gone or if a mission turns up." Soma huffed to Yuu as if he didn't have to ask.

"We'll be fine." Gina assured. "You just be sure to bring those four back."

"Hm, okay. All right, guys, let's move ou-"

"Do not neglect your duties as the First Unit, focus on the missions at hand." Tsubaki ordered to them in lecture as she came up from the lower level from the stairs.

"!"

"But, Tsubaki-" Alisa complained before Tsubaki cut her off.

"Even though my brother is missing I have a duty not t let it affect the priorities of missions. You should do the same."

"..."

"That might be the balance I should keep, but... Nevermind, sorry. I'm just ranting. Ignore me. It'd be helpful if the First Unit can prioritize their usual mission, then go help support Tatsumi's retreat. It's scary enough to lose God Eaters, but what's worse is losing the trust of the people you protect."

"(Sigh) You're right..." Yuu groaned out, slightly flatten by put-down Tsubaki had just did to him and the others. "Sorry, Ma'am. I'll go check what missions Hibari has for us before we go searching for the others."

"Hmph, that's all I can ask for." Tsubaki nodded in approval as she move to the side a little so Yuu could go down the stairs. By the Mission Desk, Hibari was fluttered and unorganized unlike her usual professional air. She didn't even notice that Yuu had approached her desk until her knocked on it.

"Oh, hello! Accepting a mission, yes? Let's see..." Her hands were uncharacteristically clumsy as she typed through the database, worry making her fingers shake. "Hm? Can you hold a second? I have an incoming emergency call from the Research Unit... Tatsumi, Shun, Karel, and Shōkan have encountered an unidentified Aragami at the factory ruins. Request for retreat backup. And... Oh, I'm sorry I kept you waiting."

"No worries, Hibari." Yuu said, trying to calm her fluster. "What's wrong?"

"That was just a quick alert, so I can't say much... I'll request the official mission when we know more. Let me see what I have. It'll just be a moment."

"..."

"Huh? I just received another announcement for a backup request. Tatsumi's team has encountered an unexpected enemy and they required aid. The First Unit is assigned with another mission, so you need to prioritize that first. And..."

"And?"

"I understand this is completely personal and I don't mean to burden you before an important mission, but... if possible, please take care of your mission quickly and help Tatsumi out..."

"Don't sweat it, Hibari. We were planning to do that anyway." Yuu assured to her with a thumbs up and a grin. "Don't worry, we'll bring Tatsumi back to you in one piece."

"... Thank you. Good luck on your mission." Hibari genuinely meant that as her words reached her eyes.

"In a sense, this can be foreshadowing... Or more like a forecast... Please head out to help Tatsumi as soon as you can. If you're lucky, you'll be able to prevent two tragedies from happening."

"?!" Yuu turned around in shock, surprised to see Ren sitting on the benches behind him. He didn't even see or notice Ren there before. To find him suddenly there had utterly startled Yuu.

"Hey, Leader! What's the stitch?" Kota called out to him from above on the railings, bring Yuu back to himself.

"Huh? Oh, we're heading out to the City of Mercy before we make a stop at the Sunken Grid."

"Wha? Oh man, but we need to get to the Sunken Grid now."

"Then we'll just have to get the mission done even quicker."

*** City of Mercy ***

"Whoa, that was quick." Kota commented as they finally took down the Dyaus Pita.

They had split into two groups to get the job done quicker. Kota and Karen and taken care of the Aether in the church, while Yuu and Annette took on the Dyaus Pita out in the open area. Keeping the Aragami apart to take care of the job easier. Kota's and Karen's firepower was enough to take the Aether down in no time. Karen constantly going for head shots while Kota went after its skirt armor.

But Karen became a little merciless with her shots as much as honor would allow. Taking out its crown armor, without relenting to give the Aether a chance to fire back, run, or even fall to the ground. She refused to stop until it feel into eternal darkness for good.

'Next.' Karen simply huffed as she ran off with Kota following behind her to catch up with the other two to take down the Dyaus Pita. She stayed mostly in Blade-mode as she attack the armor in its claws and wing armor, or so it was called, it was actually more like a cloth armor or a scarf around the Aragami that resembled wings in the wind.

"It's over." Karen sighed out, not truly tired. She turned to Yuu with pleading eyes. "Can we go now?"

"Right, the missions not over until we get the others home."

"(Huff) I'm beat." Kota huffed out in exhaustion.

"This really is a battlefield." Annette whined as she wiped the sweat from her brow.

"You two go on ahead." Kota suggested with a waving off hand. "We'll catch up with you once we catch out breath."

"Fine." Yuu agreed before turning to Karen with a nod. "Let's go."

"Hmph." She nodded in return before dashing off with Yuu toward the Sunken Grid.

"Please, hurry." Annette pleaded to them with exhaustion. "They might be in trouble."

*** Sunken Grid ***

Tatsumi was charging at a Kongou, Shun and Shōkan were working on.

"Bust through!" Karel commanded as he supplied cover fire.

Things were about to get worse when another Kongou was running into the scene. But a mysterious Aragami, similar to the dragon-like Hannibal but corrosive in the flames, came along a punched the Kongous out of the way with its bare clawed fists.

"!" They all gasped in shock, in one foul swoop this Aragami had taken down two Aragami as if they were rag-dolls.

"What the hell... is that monster?!" Shun cried out when the Aragami saw one of the Kongous still moved and leaped down on it, thrusting its claws into its chest to finish it off.

"Holy crap, this is definitely not good." Karel said, starting to get nervous as the Aragami took notice of them.

"It's just one of them! Everyone, disperse and just keep running!" Tatsumi instructed, trying to keep his team calm and the situation under control. But that's when he noticed one of his teammates zoning out. "Shōkan?! What are you doing?!"

"..." She was just standing there, staring at the Aragami without even lifting her God Arc to defend herself. "You're not Rie. Who... are you?"

"Gah!" Tatsumi grunted in frustration in pain as he got in front of Shōkan with his shield and blocked the Aragami's incoming claws at the last second. The force of the impact knocked him off his feet. "Man... this isn't gonna be pretty... Huh?!"

He gasped as he saw Yuu run passed him to meet the Aragami's incoming fist with his own God Arc shield. While they both made impact with each other with an incredible force, Yuu's God Arc began to pulsate as he entered into a Resonance...

_.xxxxx._

_"Where... am I?_

_"What... am I?_

_"Where'd my... God Arc go?"_

_"Oh, Aegis... That's it! Where's Aegis? Where's Aegis?"_

_"Ahh... Am I... am I dead?"_

_"Ohh... I'm so sleepy... I'm so sleepy..."_

_"Is that... an Aragami?_

_"Who is it? Who's calling me? Where are you? I'm dizzy..."_

_.xxxxx._

_"Damn Aragami! You'll pay for attacking my comrades!"_

_"What's going on with the others?!"_

_"Damn... not deep enough?! What a pain in the butt! Just die, damn you!"_

_"If it weren't for you monsters..."_

_"Where are they...? Are they all safe?"_

_"(Gasp) Gah! What's going on?!"_

_"Stop it! Run! Try to escape... please!_

_"Get the hell out of here!"_

_"Don't hang around here, who are you?"_

_"(Gasp) Is that you, Rookie?"  
_

_"(Roar) Stop!"_

_.xxxxx._

It felt like Yuu had just paused in place along with the Aragami as they both stop in action, continuing to stare at each other.

"Another one?! How many more do I have to kill under the Cold One appears?!" Karen growled out in rage.

"!" Shōkan had finally come to from her zoning out once she noticed Karen raising her Gun-mode against the Aragami. "No!"

"!" Karen gasped out in surprise as Shōkan pushed, no rammed her, from the side, making her shot miss the target. "Nrhh! What are you doing?!"

The Aragami seemed to have calmed down a little, making a run for it near the closest Aragami exit. Roaring as it left.

"Shimatta, it's getting away!" Karen growled taking aim.

"No, Karen! Don't shoot, don't shoot!" Shōkan pleaded with her, shaking her shoulder so she couldn't focus the shot.

"Tst," Karen grunted as the Aragami got away, turning to Shōkan beside her with a fury in her eyes. "Why the hell not?!"

"Because this one is different! Look at it more than just your eyes."

"?!"

"Wow, you chased them away..." Shun said in awe and relief to Karen and Yuu, but mostly to Yuu.

"Yeah... he sure did..." Karel sighed, agreeing with Shun.

"Ahh... we're saved..." Tatsumi said, getting back up on his feet. He walked up to Yuu to stare at where the Aragami had disappeared to along with Yuu. "Still... I wonder... who was that?"

"..."

"Hmm? What's wrong?" Tatsumi asked in concern as Yuu didn't respond back, he was just staring at where the Aragami had disappeared to with a sad look in his eyes. "Hey..."

"..." Yuu continued to stare off into the distance. Thinking about the haunting words Ren had mention to him before.

_"Let's say you were tracking Lindow and were fortunate enough to run into him."_

Got it, he was fortunate enough...

_"Tell me... What would you do if he'd become an Aragami?"_

...

_"Would you be able to kill 'that' Aragami?"_

... No... He couldn't do it.

"Hey, Yuu?!"

"?!" Yuu gasped out of his thoughts as he looked at Tatsumi at the side of him, waving his hand in Yuu's face, trying to get his attention.

"Ohh, welcome back, you zoned out on us for a second." Tatsumi chuckled.

"Sorry..."

"Must be a First Unit thing. Shōkan did the same thing not too long ago." Tatsumi joked around, pointing back at Shōkan with his thumb. "Got me landing on my ass."

"Sorry about that... thanks for looking after my teammate."

"Thanks for saving mine." Tatsumi countered back with a tap on Yuu's shoulder. "Can we go back now, I'm tired of being out here."

"So you know Brendan's already back at the Den?"

"Yeah, Hibari told us before those Kongous showed up." Tatsumi sighed out before turning positive at the mention of Hibari. "Speaking of Hibari, I gotta call her to tell her we're still alive."

*** The Chopper Ride ***

It was a long ride home. Shōkan had fallen asleep before they even lifted off, just before Kota and Annette finally caught up with the others. They were relieved that Yuu and Karen saved the others, but were a little disappointed that they missed out on the action. However, Kota got a little concerned as he saw that a little bit of the life left Yuu's eyes during the time he left the team to save the others. Something was bothering him, something he did not want to tell the others...

"I'm not gonna say thanks. You decided to help us, I never asked. But you know... yeah. I'll admit you support this Branch." Shun said in a huff, twisting his head away from looking at the Rescue team. His words were aimed at all of them, but mostly toward his little cousin as a small blush of embarrassment came over his face. Whether from being saved by his younger cousin, or because of his childish behavior, Karen did not know. But she would not hold it against him, nonetheless.

"Hn, it's fine. I'd be more surprise if you did say thanks." Karen gave him a smirk, before it faded. She turned her head away from him, not wanting to look at him as she was about to do something she never thought she would ever say. "Shun-niisan."

"!" Shun nearly fell out of his seat. She never called him in such a familiar way before. Sure she always reserved such close nicknaming for Gina, but never for him. It almost made him feel... poofy. "W-whatever!"

"Thanks a bunch." Tatsumi jumped in, thanking them for his team since they had too much pride to. He gave Yuu a good hard pat on the back in good gesture. "The thought of if you didn't come gives me chills. There's no way I could've handle it. You really saved us."

"Uh... sure, no problem..." Yuu nodded to him, still slightly out of it.

"That was the first time I looked at an Aragami and seriously thought I was going to die." Karel sacredly admitted, still rushing with the adrenaline of almost dying. "That... thing. It's not just a normal Aragami. It knows us. I just felt it when I looked at its eyes."

"..." Karen could felt like those words were similar to what Shōkan had said. Could this be what she meant? But as Karen was contemplating to herself, Shōkan had slid down from her leaning spot on the wall of the Chopper and onto Karen's shoulder. Feeling the warmth from Karen, she began to subconsciously wrapped her arms around Karen in her sleep. "!"

Karen was startled for a second by Shōkan's gesture as she cuddled her face into Karen's shoulder, but did not move to stop Shōkan otherwise.

"Ugh, how can you stand that, Karen? She's all grabby." Shun pointed out in slight disgust.

"Yeah, why don't you push her off?" Kota agreed.

"..." Karen looked at Shōkan's sleeping face for a second before turning to face the boys. "Have you ever wondered why Shōkan-san ever feels the need to cuddle into anything close to her?"

"?" She waited for an answer, but when they gave her none and only awarded her with raised eyebrows she continued on.

Karen waited a beat to tuck a stray strand of the other rookie's blue hair behind her ear before speaking. "It's because she's afraid. She cuddles to things for any form of security."

"!"

"The darkness of her mind must truly be a frightening thing. She seeks the protection of anything to feel even the subtle hint of being safe and sound. Now with her coming to me with such a plea, how could I ever push her away?"

"..."

"Wow... I guess we all get scared at times. You know?" Kota humbly admitted, feeling slightly embarrassed for judging Shōkan for her odd quirks. "Must be tough to not be able to even escape your fears in your own dreams."

"I never liked dreaming." Karen somberly admitted. "It's always brought me too close to the darkness..."

*** Author's Notes ***

Shimatta- it's not really a curse words but it means something like 'darn', or 'darn it'


	14. Chapter 14

The Time of Truth

Alisa, Soma, and Gina were waiting for the others' return in the Entrance's lounge area. Tapping their fingers away as their anxieties started to rise. Soma was tapping his fingers in a wave-like pattern on his arms, while his foot restlessly tapped on the floor in his impatience. Alisa was in the same-like nervous states, as her hands tapped on their resting spot on her legs. Gina was starting to get annoyed by the two's little orchestra of taps.

"Oh will you two relax?" Gina huffed out, uncrossing her legs and taking her face off its resting place on the back of her knuckles, attach to the arm whose elbow was resting on the backside of the couch, as she sat upright. "I'm sure the others are alright."

"But... they've been gone for a long time." Alisa pointed out, making her panic and anxieties start to rise. "And the sun's going down."

"Yuu and the others are strong, they'll bring the other trouble makers home." Gina calmly insisted as she leaned back on the couch again, crossing her legs again along with her arms. "Have faith in their charm."

"You're idea of 'charm' is slightly warped." Soma huffed out at her.

"Oh? (Chuckle) Or is your idea of charm slightly boring?" Gina shot back at him. "Or perhaps... you like the wild ones?"

"This is not about me or my preferences," Soma growled, annoyed at where the topic was about to stray off to. "This is about getting those idiots home before something bad happens."

"Hm, you're such a worry bird. Perhaps you should show others more of this soft side, it'll show there's more to you then just grouching."

"Tst, be quiet, Gina."

"Hn, as you wish." She couldn't help but grin as Soma started to grumble to himself in annoyance. That was when the others decided to pop up through the Mission Elevator. "Oh, welcome back."

"Ahh, we made it in one piece." Tatsumi sighed out in relief before greeting Gina with a nod. "Sorry to make you worry about us, Gina."

"Hn, try not to do it again." She smoothly commanded before playful turning her head away in a huff. "I'd rather not have an ulcer while I'm still in my 20s."

"Heh, we can't make any promises." Tatsumi nervously chuckled out, rubbing the back of his head before he looked over the railings to the lower floor. "Now if you don't mind me, I'm gonna get some worry sympathy from Hibari."

"Heh, have you no shame? Preying on the poor girl while she's a worried wreck." Gina teased at him, trying to play at his guilt. "She may seem strong and profession, but she still has the heart of a young girl."

"Hey, I bet Yuu gonna be getting the same sympathy affection from Alisa." Tatsumi countered out in his defense, making Alisa start to blush. "Aren't you, Yuu?"

"..." But Yuu remained silent, a somber look on his face as he stared at the ground with his hands in his pockets.

"What's wrong with him?" Soma asked Tatsumi while tilting his head toward Yuu.

"He's just been out of it after we bumped into that mysterious black Aragami. The whole encounter seems to have taken an affect to him." Tatsumi sighed out in slight concern.

"That black Aragami?"

"Yeah, it kinda resembles a Hannibal, but darker."

"Hmm... feels like somethings mixed."

"Will he be alright?" Alisa asked, bringing Soma out of his pondering as she brought back up their concerns for their leaders mental state as of now.

"He'll be fine. He's probably just tired now." Shun insisted to them before bring a hard slap onto Yuu's back. "Hey, wake up, man!"

"!" Yuu grunted back into the now as the hard smack on his back jolted him into reality. "Oh, uh, sorry, guys. I'm just... gonna report to Dr. Sakaki and Tsubaki about what happened out there."

"Are you sure you're alright?" Alisa asked one more time in worry for him while he was walking toward the elevator.

"I'm fine, Alisa. I'm just... tired." Yuu confirmed to her, the luster in his eyes was lost as the elevator doors closed him in.

"..." Alisa looked on at the elevator in sadness as she felt that her leader was closing them off again.

"Seriously, that guys been pushing himself too hard." Kota ranted out, in a pout.

"Hmph, we all could use a little rest." Karel pointed out, pointing to Shōkan in example. "Looks like one of us is already taking the initiative."

"!" Soma's and Alisa's eyes widened in concern as they noticed Shōkan lying unconscious in Karen's arms.

"What happened? Is she hurt?" Soma asked as he looked her over. She appeared to be unharmed, just... cuddling up to Karen in her quirks as she was being carried in princess style.

"She's fine, she's just very tired." Karen explained to them, making them both relax a little.

"I can carry the brat to her room for you if you're tired." Soma offered, reaching his hands out for the slumbering rookie, but Karen shook her head at his offer and backed away.

"No, I can carry her. She's on my Floor anyway." Karen reasoned. "And besides... it would be inappropriate for a man of no relation to enter into a maiden's room."

"... You really are old fashioned." Soma stated out in a groan.

"Heh, call it what you want." Karen countered back with a smirk before turning around to head into the elevator to deliver Shōkan back into her room. "But thank you for the offer anyway, Mr. Sunshine-dono."

"Grh! Son of a...! Is everybody going to start calling me that now?" Soma growled out in annoyance.

"I have to say, it _is_ rather catchy." Karen admitted to him before the elevator doors closed, returning to silence. The ride down to the Rookie Floor was peaceful, the passenger in her arms made no trouble. She had vouched tossing and turning in her sleep for simply cuddling into Karen.

Karen had found no problem with the gesture, nor any annoyance at her companion's unusually clingy nature. The hardest part of the ordeal was coasting Shōkan's wrist to let go of her God Arc while they were in the Hanger without even touching her God Arc. Thankfully, Karen knew the pressure points of the human body, it was easy to get Shōkan to obey her will, just annoying to have to do it while balancing her with one arm.

Grabbing Shōkan's arm again, she grabbed the one with the armlet on it, to use the identification key on it to unlock Shōkan's room door. She had a habit of locking the door when she was not in or when she was asleep, which Karen could respect. There wasn't anyone in the Den she had met that she couldn't trust, but things could happen. You couldn't be too careful in Karen's opinion.

Carefully putting Shōkan onto her bed, she took off the sleeping girl's boots and left it at that. Karen didn't take the trouble of stripping Shōkan out of her most likely sweaty clothes, she had a feeling Shōkan wouldn't appreciate that when she woke up. She didn't even tuck Shōkan into her sheets just to keep them clean. It was starting to get warm at nights so she would be find. Turning to leave the sleepy Gods Eater to herself, Karen left her with a few words.

"[Hmph, sleep well, wild one.]" Karen smirked at her from the corner of her eyes as she stood in the door-frame. "[Don't make me needlessly worry like Shun does.]"

With that said, Karen closed the door behind her, letting it automatically lock as she went on her way. Once she had heard the door click shut, Shōkan's eyes shot open as she bolted upright in her bed. Smirking to herself, she couldn't believe how easily things were turning her way. While most of the 1st through 3rd Unit were tired out from the day's events, now would be a good chance to strike.

"Thank you for the chivalry, noble samurai." Shōkan teased back at Karen for her earlier remark, although it went on deaf ears. Swinging her legs over the bedside, she began to shake in her own humor. "If times were different, you'd be quite the prize (chuckle). Sooo, now is my chance. I best get a move on while Yuu's out of the room."

*** Meanwhile in the Director's Office ***

"Sorry to jump into it, but I need you to give me a short report about that black Aragami." Tsubaki order after Yuu got done reporting what happened during the Extraction Mission. Tsubaki was standing beside Dr. Sakaki, who was sitting at the desk, both of them waiting to hear the full detail on this mysterious Aragami that happened to appear out of nowhere.

Yuu knew they both had a bad feeling about this, and he didn't want to break the news to Tsubaki. She had just gotten her hopes up at the return of her little brother, he didn't have the heart to tear her down again. But she had to know, she had the _right_ to know. It was probably for the best that she prepared herself for the worst to come than for it to suddenly hit her on its own.

"What... is it?" Tsubaki asked again, some of the strength in her voice lost as she noticed that Yuu was hesitating.

"... I think it's Lindow..." Yuu honestly confessed. He saw her eyes widen for a second in pain, bringing a squeezing feeling to his heart. But then she left out a long breath as her eyes softened to a warm thank you as she noticed Yuu's sympathetic empathy toward her plight.

"I see... as I thought." She gave him a small smile, trying to ease his worries. And most likely his troubles of believing that this whole situation was his fault. "I value your honesty."

"... So what are we gonna do now...?"

"Let me discuss this with Dr. Sakaki for a moment. We want to think of a counter measure, quick." Tsubaki explained before instructing Yuu further. "In the mean time, why don't you stay on standby in your room. Get some rest, I'm sure you've had a long day..."

*** A little bit earlier on the Veteran's Floor ***

The Floor was dead silent as Shōkan snuck from the stairway and into the hallway. Afraid that the elevator would bring too much attention to herself or bump her into someone she didn't want to, she decide to take the lease travel way around the Den. She tip-toed down the hallway, staying to the walls. There was nothing to take cover behind, since it was an open hallway, but it was just in her nature to creep around her destination when she was incognito.

She was use to things like this being dangerous, it was just edge into her mind in permanent stone and would most likely follow her into her grave. Regardless of how safe she felt at this place, or how much she trusted the people here... She just couldn't help it.

Making her way to Yuu's room at the end of the hallway, she had expected that she would have to break-in his door. But was surprised that it just opened to her with a simple push of her fingers... Yuu was too trusting to leave his door unlocked.

"I almost feel bad doing this." Shōkan whispered aloud to herself in slight guilt for violating one of the few people she would dare to call her friend trust in her. But she had things to do, pushing aside her conscience's conflict, she silent walk through the door. "But, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do."

She leaned on the door while she silently shut it behind her, looking around her leader's room in the dark. Aside from the few empty cans of 'First Love Juice' he left on the counter and the pics of his team on his dresser, he was a rather neat person. Careful not to bump anything out of place, Shōkan made her way to his Terminal. He didn't even lock his access to his Terminal login...

"Really, Yuu, you're far too trusting." She chuckled to herself before frowning at herself. "Which is something this world desperately needs, and something I'd rather not crush... Dammit, I'm going soft... I'll just take a quick look-see, then I'm gone."

She began going through Yuu's NORN access, immediately all the files locked to her had opened up without a problem.

"Alright, let's start at Aegis again... A man-made island used as the cover for the Ark Project. Director Schicksal was nurturing Nova there.

"Nova? Arda Nova? No, I think this means something else...

"Once humankind's hope, it lost its Aragami Armor when Nova set off for the Moon, and now Aragami an be seen strutting through the ruins of its abandon buildings. An Aragami resembling the Arda Nova has been sighted, and some have pointed out a possible link to Nova's left-behind tentacles, but details are unclear.

"Tentacles? This thing must be huge. Either way, this doesn't explain much. Who is 'Nova'? Perhaps the Aegis Project file will clear this up." If the others were here, they would say they've never seen Shōkan this serious before. Maybe a little when she was explaining about her past, but that had a lack-of-care luster to it or a 'it doesn't bother me' hue to it. But this... she had turned to stone. "The Aegis Project was secretly put on hold by Director Schicksal after realizing that humankind would be defenseless against Nova's Devouring Apocalypse.

"Wait, what?!

"After the Ark Project Incident, the project was put on hold: but, as the former Director's death is officially considered an accident, it is still considered 'under development.'

"So... what is this 'Ark Project'?" The files seemed to flow so easily to Shōkan through Yuu's login, she didn't even feel a hint of frustration. However... something else was building up inside her as she read on. "The Ark Project: A project to save humankind, developed under secrecy by Director Schicksal. A bold project under which a man-made apocalypse would... would be triggered after evacuating some humans away from the planet to serve as the 'Seeds'. Using Aegis as a hideout, he had been nurturing Nova.

"..." Shōkan was finding it hard to read on, she was starting to feel sick. "T-to trigger the Devouring Apocalypse, as well as to maintain control over the planet's environment after the apocalypse, he needed to obtain Shio's core.

"... Who... is Shio? But before that... who exactly is Nova?

"An Earth-devouring Aragami nurtured by the Director at Aegis Island.

"Yatta-yatta, already know that. Outwardly it resembles Aisha Gauche, who was killed during the Bias Factor Human Test when she was taken over by an Aragami. Details are unclear. Its tentacles covered the entire planet, but Nova was carried off to the Moon by the human-form Aragami, Shio. The tentacles left behind have wreaked havoc around the world: Countermeasures must be taken soon.

"... Another name I do not know. And that 'Shio' has popped up again. Who is that? From the sound of things they're an Aragami, but that can't be right..."

Going into the People Category in NORN, Shōkan looked up the names she had just learned, starting with the first one she strolled on. "Aisha Gauche, death of 26.

"Death...? At such a young age too. I guess death doesn't discriminate against age. But still, that's... sad.

"She was one of the founding members of Fenrir, and the foremost authority on Aragami research. Served as chief of the Aragami Research Lab, where Dr. Sakaki and Schicksal also worked at the time of Fenrir's launch. A leading biochemist, it was she who proposed the Managarm Project. One test involved embedding the Bias factor into a human, which she conducted on... on her own child?!

"Ugh, oh God... I'm gonna be sick." Shōkan held in the bile that was building up inside her, clinching her pained stomach as the information; the last thing she needed was to leave throw up in Yuu's room. That stuff left a horrible smell and was hard to clean up.

Now Shōkan had done some terrible things in her short time on this world, but the idea of a mother using her own child as an experiment sickened Shōkan. It shattered everything that she believed in, a mother's love and trust was a sacred thing to her. To have a mother violate such a trust a child had no choice but to have in her, let alone an unborn child, nearly ripped at her sanity. Has mankind fallen so low? Swallowing in the acid building up in her throat, she sucked in her disgust to finish reading on.

"The test failed and she ended up losing her life..." Looks like the sins of the mother had caught up with the poor woman. Despite all the things this woman had done being morally wrong in Shōkan's eyes, she held no hatred toward this woman. For all she knew, in the woman's eyes, she felt like she was doing the right thing. Maybe, in some twisted way, she was trying to protect her child. But even so, one thing was eating away at Shōkan's conscious. "... Where is the child now?

"Tst, unfortunately I don't have time to find out. Yuu could be here any minute. I have to find out who Shio is." Strolling down the name files, she had finally bumped into the name that had been popping up in the files. "A human-form Aragami. Possessing the core that would trigger Nova's Devouring Apocalypse, the Singularity, making her the target of former Director Schicksal, who sought to trigger a man-made Devouring Apocalypse. Her core was embedded in Nova, but she retained her sense of humanity, she flew off to the Moon in order to save Soma and the others, taking Nova with her.

"... So the little ghost of the wastelands had stopped her wondering to make friends with the First Unit of the Den. Who would have thought...?" A warm smile came over Shōkan as she looked up at the ceiling in her pondering. "I'm glad the little thing made some friends. God knows how lonely she looked out there. But... she saved our lives by going to the Moon. Looks like I owe her a 'thank you'."

She was about to close out and call it for the night, but as she was about to go back on the tab she saw the last locked file on Director Johannes. Staring at her with enticement.

"Mine as well." Shōkan grunted out in bitterness towards the name before clicking the file open. "Johannes von Schicksal, age 45 of death, Former Director of Fenrir Far East Branch. An advocate of the Aegis Project, but was secretly advancing the Ark Project. Sensing that Lindow was investigating him, he assassinated him during a mission, making it look like an unforeseen accident.

"..." Shōkan's fist on the side of the Terminal began to shake and quiver, her body slouched over as she started to cry. The tears fell silently from her eyes, as her face remained unmoving with cold hate. "Selfish bastards..."

A clicking sound was heard, someone was coming in.

"!" No time to cover her tracks. Shōkan just closed out of her tabs on NORN without logging off, turning off the screen as she dashed to hide under the side of the coffee table in the room.

Yuu had tiredly creaked in to his room, not even noticing that he didn't shut the door all the way. He seemed sad from Shōkan's worm-view of him. He had walk in through the dark, not noticing Shōkan's presence there as he made his way to his bed. Slumping down onto the mattress he let out a sigh of disappointment and exhaustion. Something must have really had him down, but unfortunately Shōkan didn't have the time to figure out what nor was it the appropriate time to ask.

But as she was now covered from his view by his long dresser, now was the perfect time to sneak out of there. She began to cautiously crawl toward the door, careful not to make a sound as the light peeking out of the crack of the door guided her to her escape. Yuu was busy taking off his jacket and tossing it over his dresser to even notice a thing. Shōkan was almost home free, she just needed to wait for the opportune moment to get up on her knees to squeeze out the door.

She had to time this just right, she only had one shot. In three... two... one. Now! Yuu had bent down to take off his shoes, quickly she bolted up to crouch down on her knees, quickly creaking the door further open as she quickly slid out as she got back up on her feet. Finally out and clear to her freedom, her kindness started to catch up to her. Staying for a few seconds, she silently closed Yuu's door all the way. The click of the door linking with its lock not even heard through her gentle touch.

"Phew." Sighing in relief, she started backing away from the door backwards as her heart started to calm down again. Only for it to jump into her throat when a strong arm had wrapped around her, locking her into a solid form behind her, while another partnering hand covered her mouth to keep her from screaming. "!"

"Sorry." Came the voice of her capture by her right hear. She felt like she could almost cough out her heart as she notice that the voice was Soma. "Curse my heightened hearing, or my other senses if you want. Either way, you're not getting away."

"!" She couldn't believe this... she was caught?!

One thing was for sure... this was definitely not good...

*** Ten Minutes Later in Dr. Sakaki's Lab ***

So there she was, tied up to a chair with old fashion rope while the rest of the original First Unit members hovered around her. Soma had immediately informed Yuu of what Shōkan was doing, which immediately alerted the other First Unit member on the Floor who in turned called for the other members. Soon Soma had dragged her to Dr. Sakaki's lab to get some information out of her, the others soon followed. Dr. Sakaki was pretty good about getting out what he needed to know, he could be a big help on interrogating the 'suspicious' rookie.

"Answer me, what were you doing?" Yuu ordered to Shōkan, taking the role of leading interrogator as he leaned onto Dr. Sakaki's monitors with his arms and legs crossed. Soma was sporting a similar pose by the counters on the left, while Kota sat on the couch on the left side of the lab while Alisa and Sakuya sat on the one on the right side.

"..." But Shōkan remained silent, either out of annoyance of Yuu's obvious question which he already knew the answer to, or out of annoyance for just being caught.

"Answer me, Shōkan. Or is that even your real name?"

"?" That was a weird thing to say. "What do you mean? Oh course that's my real name."

"Is it?" Yuu had raise an eyebrow at her answer. "Seems like we've been doing some checking up on you as well."

"Oh?"

"Yup, been doing some digging up, checking up your background. You know, that jazz?" Yuu explained with a calm shrug. "Said you were a 17 year old female from the D14 District of the Far East Branch Outer Ghetto. Your file said you have a minor criminal record, which will be swept under the rug on your 18th birthday as state in the Juvenile Recorder Clearance Law. However, as a Gods Eater of the Den, your past record will not be held against you until said time, or until other offensives have been committed. Everything seemed to check in order. However... something felt... off."

"?"

"I did some back checking on your Fenrir citizenship number. And... according to that, you're a deceased old man of 85 with a wife of 40 years and a son working in the Outer Ghettos." Yuu informed. "Last I checked, you're not dead and you're not old. So clearly unless you had a major plastic surgery, sex change, and faked your death, these forms are fake. Meaning, you're not who you say you are."

"I'm everything I told you I am." Shōkan stated firmly with a slight growl of annoyance. "Nothing I ever said to you was a lie."

"Really? I find it hard to believe that one that would go through the trouble of stealing someone's FCN to make a false citizenship would use their real name." Yuu huffed in disbelief, which only brought a smirk to Shōkan's face.

"The best cover in life are those shrouded by truths."

"I doubt that, we did catch you after all."

"Hmph, yes you did." Shōkan said in mocking praise as she shrugged her shoulders up as if she didn't care. "Although, it does make me wonder how?"

"I've been keeping an eye on you for a while now."

"Ooh, how flattering." Shōkan sarcastically smirked, nearly laughing as she saw the jealous look on Alisa at Yuu's admittance, even if was not meant to be a romantic gesture.

"And me and Kota followed you around on your Off Day." Soma admitted to her as well, making her turn her head to look at him in shock.

"You guys were tailing me without me even noticing?!" She couldn't even believe it, the news made her slump back into her chair in disappointment in herself. "How the hell did I let that happen...? Must be losing my touch."

"Enough. Clearly if you had to forge your citizenship papers, you must not be a residence of Fenrir. Meaning, you don't belong to the Far East Branch or any of the other affiliated Branches for that matter." Yuu concluded as if they had discovered some horrible truth. "You're a Plunderer."

"!" Shōkan's eyebrow began to twitch at that.

"Whoa! Really?! Holy Crap!" Kota exclaimed in alarm as he jumped back a little away from Shōkan. If what he heard from the stories as a child and the rumors going around as he was growing up, Plunderers were extremely dangerous. This probably explained the savagery Shōkan would occasionally display during missions.

"Oh come on, Kota! I ain't gonna bite your head off!" Shōkan barked at him in annoyance at his sudden repellent toward her before turning her frustration back toward Yuu. "And don't call us that, it's extremely offensive! If you must, call us Rouges, it sounds much better!"

"Seems like you've built up a reputation for yourself, Famine." Yuu stated, ignoring her complaint as he tossed a file open at her feet. "Fenrir's got a record for you, but no face to go by."

"!" Shōkan's heart stop for a second, as she saw the file with rough descriptions and pictures of faces she knew from days of her wild youth.

"Seems like all of your friends have built up quite a file for themselves." Yuu said before tossing down one the pics in his hands over the file. It was a picture of a bulky man in his 20s, his walnut head almost spiking like fire, holding up a limp body on the handle of his giant axe over his head, frozen in mid-action of tossing the body to the hard ground. The picture was somewhat blurry but still recognizable. "War, the brutal offspring of savagery and blood lust, Leader of the War branch of the Riders. Extremely dangerous, do not engage."

"Actually, that's a really good shot of him. It's really hard to catch him in mid-action, he moves too fast." Shōkan commented as Yuu went on with his line-up, tossing another picture on the floor. The next one was of a young woman, entering into her early 20s. Her raven hair covered by a hood made from the long scarf wrapped around her neck that flung in the wind. She carried crossbows in each hand, with a twisted smile. The shot was unfocused, but the twisted smile that reached her eyes could still be seen through the blur.

"Plague, the unholy daughter of sin and pestilence, Leader of the Plague branch of the Rider. Known for her short temper, quick to the trigger, and love for strife. Extremely dangerous, do not engage."

"Okay that one is true. Those poison coated arrows are mad crazy to get hit by." Yuu was starting to get annoyed by her constant interruption as if this was some sort of banter. Unintentionally, he slammed the next photo down over the others in frustration. This one was of a guy around the same age as him, or would be since the pic was of a 14 year old that was over three years old. He had a slender build and long wavy raven hair that reached a little passed his shoulders and covered half his face with its bangs as he hung his head down. He looked to be resting on building rumble, one leg resting up with a bent knee while the other hung down as a giant scythe rested on his shoulder.

"Death, the living definition of the word itself. Out of the other leader of the Riders, this one is extremely mellow. But can be the most dangerous out of them all when provoked. Extremely dangerous, do not engage."

"..." Yuu found her silence rather surprising, no witty retort to back up with this file. "He's a good kid."

"Grhh! And last but not least, you!" Yuu growled out in annoyance, tossing her pic in the pile as well. But her picture was so blurry that it couldn't even be made out what it was. Her swinging chains looked like propellers over and around her tiny body, most likely the picture was taken when she was in her early teens. "Famine, Leader of the Famine branch of the Riders. Her moves are as quick and calculated as they are viscous and cruel. In recent records she has gone off the chart and a new leadership has been established. Further observations are needed to be made. However, she is still to be considered at large. Beyond dangerous, if encountered stay hidden and pray she does not find you."

"Well that's a little much don't you think? And to be honest, would you consider the Riders as more of a Guild? I mean, aren't we a little too big to be consider a gang? I have no idea how this works."

"Quit fooling around, Shōkan. Why are you here?"

"You know why I'm here."

"Yes but you're clearly here for more than that, as you already stated before. Turns out you've been transporting a lot of supply goods to an affiliate, according to Soma and Kota. So, you've been taking Fenrir's supplies and been sending them to gang?"

"Taking? That's one step from implying that I stole it." Shōkan grunted out, offended. "I merely traded for those goods in honest good-and-tenders. I traded my services as a God Eater, and in returned earned those items from my work. What I do with them is none of your concern."

"It is our concern, if those goods are being used to supply an army that could attack and pillage us." Soma growled, pointing out an excellent point.

"Pfft, well you guys sure think very highly of yourselves." Shōkan nearly laughed at his notion. "We have no need to 'plunder' the Far East Branch, or change the relationship we already have with Fenrir."

"Spare us." Alisa huffed out with and hand to push back her stray hairs. "As if we'd believe you after you Plunderers tried to take advantage of the chaos while the Far East Branch was still forming and took whatever you desired without care until the Aragami wiped out your camps at the battles of the Forgotten Carrier."

"!" Alisa was taken aback by the look anger and disappointment that came over Shōkan's face and was directly at her in full force. "Poor child of the Branch, you blind thing. Believing everything that the Higher-ups write what happened without thinking otherwise for yourself what lies underneath that. Heh he-ha, (Exhale) I thought you would know better than that from your experience in the First Unit, at least judging from what you've all been through."

"!" Alisa gasped, embarrassed at being lectured like a child by a girl tied to a chair, a Plunderer no less.

"You all seem to judge us as some evil thing. Savagery comparable to the Aragami." Shōkan mocked in appall before getting serious again. "You go by what Fenrir has said about us, but you fail to realize one thing... we just wanted to survive."

"..."

"You've all had but a taste of what it's like out there. We all had to live and survive in it after Fenrir had decided we weren't worth protecting behind their walls."

"That was not our intentions." Dr. Sakaki explained, finally cutting in. "The Branches ecosystem couldn't afford to sustain the population we had in the initial. It couldn't be help."

"You speak as if you were merely cutting loose ends. What made us so different that we couldn't be one of the saved?"

"It's not that simple, Shōkan. The world isn't black-and-white. As much as I hate to say it, but sometimes for the greater good sacrifices must be made."

"Sacrifices?" Shōkan grunted out, twitching her lip along with her eyes in disgust. "And who are you to decided who gets sacrificed or not? I grow tired of man and their folly at trying to play God."

"That's just the way things are."

"No! That's man's way! I'll never follow the ways of man! Why?! Because man destroys everything in its path!" Shōkan roared out, rising as far as the rope would allow out of her seat.

"!" The others were shot back, they couldn't believe how passionate she was about this.

"In over the 20 years the Aragami have been recorded roaming around, their destruction is only a mantle of the damage of what humans have done." Shōkan explained with hate in every word. "Pollutions, wars, corruption in power. Judging something or someone that is different from them in fear, and hating them because of that fear without even trying to understand them. Which in turn lead to suffering by beliefs of self-superiority over said fears. Mankind was on the path of annihilation long before the Aragami arrived."

"Hmph, how very philosophical for someone without a proper education." Soma grunted out after her rant was over.

"Don't mock us. We've learned from the books of the wasteland. Which frankly is a better education than what Fenrir is giving to its youth, since it's not censored." Shōkan huffed back at him. "That what I like about living out there. We could have unquenchable thirst for knowledge and questioning and still have the freedom to pursue it..."

"Now I understand, you are here because you want to you why." Dr. Sakaki concluded as if coming to a light-bulb. "I noticed that you've been looking through our restricted files through your login history."

"!" That got her attention, not only the fact Dr. Sakaki was coming close to the truth, but also the disturbing fact that... "You've been tracking my movements in the rooms?"

"Only a little through our monitoring system, we still haven't taken them all down."

"Hmph, how can you live in such place? Never knowing if someone is watching you poop or not." Shōkan sighed out to the others on the couches making them slightly uncomfortable.

"Shōkan!" Yuu groaned in disapproval.

"What? It's one of my genuine fears. Bathroom time is a sacred thing to me." She honestly confessed.

"So are you here to find in some form why the Plunderers were left out there?"

"Don't call us that!" Shōkan growled before calming down in her seat again. "But no, I could hardly care less about that. We've been stranded out in the wasteland, and we've thrived in it... No, Dr. Sakaki, I am here to search for another answer."

"Which would be?"

"Why did we have to die."

"?!" Such a heartbreaking question to try to find the truth to.

"Everyone dies, Shōkan. That's just how life works." Dr. Sakaki pointed out.

"Yes, but not naturally is such high commodities." Shōkan countered. "During the time of the Aegis Collapse. The Aragami had gone wild and beyond our control, with a blood-lust. The ground shook like an earthquake that felt like it was never going to end. Destroying our houses and crushing a number of our people, those were the lucky ones that didn't get eaten by the rampaging Aragami. It didn't make any since, such a number of Aragami had never behaved that way all at once. Something was compelling them to do it, something was calling to them..."

"!" They all began to get nervous as she was starting to get close to something personal.

"That was one of the main drives that pushed me into coming into the Far East Branch. I wanted to know why, what could have caused the Aragami to have act like that? I've dug all I could today, and found more than I needed to know what happened. You all decided to play with something you shouldn't have." Shōkan mocked in a sing tone voice at the last part.

"That wasn't our fault." Sakuya insisted. "The Director was planning the Ark Project behind our backs. We did everything we could to stop it."

"I didn't come here for excuses or to point the blame, Sakuya. I came here to know why." Shōkan was starting to get tired of having to repeat herself. "You don't understand, while you had lost hundreds during this man-made Apocalypse, we lost thousands. Multiple colonies of humans outside of Fenrir nearly wiped out by the Aragami in one night. You guys had your Anti-Aragami Walls, we had nothing. There's only been three moments in my life that have haunted me, and that night had made its way up to 2nd place."

"We all suffered from that day." Dr. Sakaki tried to point out.

"And we wouldn't of had to if the dogs of Fenrir didn't try to tamper into the unnecessary. (Sigh) Looks like Fenrir has fucked us over again. Well, it's not like I can blame anyone... (sadly chuckle) alive, that is. But I don't make a habit of holding grudges against the dead." But then something had hit her, as she turned to look over at Soma. "Sorry about your old man, I know my words have been insensitive."

"Hmph, that man was more like a tyrant than my father. I don't miss him much anyway." Soma huffed out as if he didn't care, but the others could see the glassy look come over his eyes.

"Don't say that, he's still your dad." Shōkan pleaded with him sadly, hating the rip between family, even if she could tell Soma was bluffing. "As foolish and warped as it was, it sounded like he was trying to do what he thought what was best for the species. But... I guess he shouldn't have messed with fate."

"You've read into a lot with those files." Dr. Sakaki commented. "You're interpretations of the records are actually pretty good."

"Thanks, although... there's one thing I didn't have time to figure out and it still bugs me."

"What would that be?" Dr. Sakaki watched in slight curiosity as the bravo she had displayed earlier disappeared into a nervous fear.

"... What ever happen... to the child in the Managarm Project...?"

"!" That question had them all flinching.

"Please... I have to know... did the child survive?" She was practically pleading with them as they all remained silent, not knowing if the person directly involved with that project would appreciate them opening their mouths about it or not.

"I'm right here." Soma finally stated, grabbing everyone's attention at his admittance to the Project. He never really like talking about it, or bringing it up for that matter, to have him openly speak about was a surprise to them. But not as much of a surprise as it was to Soma when Shōkan turned to him. He had expected a look of disgust or fear, he didn't know what to make of it when Shōkan looked at him with a face of pure relief and happiness. "?!"

"So you're alive... Thank God... you survived." She was nearly brought to tears at the suddenly realization, bringing an end to her newly building up worry. The others didn't know how to take this all in, they were happy to see someone take Soma for who he was without animosity, but they were conflicted that such feelings were coming from the person in question.

"You seem to be taking this rather personally." Sakuya pointed out in concern for the tears that were about to escape Shōkan.

"Oh, sorry... It's a long story..." Shōkan sniffled, pulling herself together.

"A story which I'm afraid we don't have time for." Yuu tiredly sighed out as he brought the conversation back to the subject at hand. He didn't have time for this now, time was a limited thing that was running out for him and his indecisiveness and he didn't have enough of it to be wasting on this. "You said you Plu- Sorry, I mean you 'Rouges' have a relationship already established with Fenrir?"

"Hmm, more like a co-existence really." Shōkan explained. "We make our way in, work to help put stuff into Fenrir while taking some stuff back for the people waiting at home."

"So there are more of you sneaking into the Branch?" Yuu questioned rhetorically, but still got an answer.

"There are Rouges hiding in the Outer Ghettos of every Fenrir Branch. Working to the bone to provide for their family what they can't at home."

"So you've been taking our resources? I thought you said you could survive on your own?" Kota questioned in alarm.

"'Working' for your resources." Shōkan corrected. "Believe it or not, we're don't come here for your food, that's just a minor bonus. There are just some plants that we can't grow in a fast or high enough quantity that we need, like cotton, so we come here to be able to afford blankets and clothes for our family."

"You guys have been taking jobs from the citizens that need them." Sakuya pointed out in disgust.

"We only work for what we need to trade for and go, fc currency has no use for us out there." Shōkan stated in annoyance at Sakuya judgmental eyes. Even though she didn't know she was doing it, it still struck a nerve with Shōkan. "We only take the jobs others won't take."

"Like being a Gods Eater." Soma grunted out sarcastically, not excepting to get a reply back. But still got one anyway.

"Hey, you said it, not me." Shōkan shrugged off.

"So how many of them are there in this Branch, and where are they hiding?" Yuu demanded, asking the money questions.

"..." Shōkan had suddenly gone quiet from her open chatterbox.

"Not going to answer, are you?"

"Sorry, but I **refuse **to answer 'that' question." Shōkan huffed, turning her head away from Yuu. "You'll never get it out of me."

"We're going to get the answer out of you, one way or another."

"So how are we going to do this?" Shōkan tiredly sighed out as she leaned back into her chair.

"Excuse me?" Yuu couldn't help but raise his eyebrow at her odd question.

"Well it's gonna be hard to pull out my fingernails with the ropes in the way."

"!" The others held back a gasp of appall as Shōkan talked about such things as if she was commenting on a cup of tea.

"Why the heck would I do that?!"

"For the torture of course." Shōkan answered as if it was the most obvious thing. "This is the part were you use any means necessary to get the answers you need since the hostage is no longer cooperating. So where are we gonna go with this? Water boarding? Psychological warfare? Rough my face up a little bit, perhaps break my shins, or... perhaps you're going for the old traditional route of pulling out my teeth, one tooth at a time?"

"!" Sakuya and Alisa were nearly on the verge of throwing up at the idea. The boys seemed rather unnerved by her casual notion of this topic.

"God, no. Why would you even think that?"

"Why do you look so surprised? You should be ready for any method in order to get what you need. Perhaps these Walls have made you all soft." Shōkan teased before she calm into a sad realization. "Perhaps I'm going soft too..."

"There are other ways of getting an answer." Yuu informed her.

"Oh? Did I miss one?"

"You forget that we're both New-Types."

"!" Shōkan's eyes widened in a panic as she saw his hand stretching out toward her.

"Leader, perhaps I should-"

"No, Alisa... I don't want you to get your hands dirty with this." Yuu more sadly pleaded with her than commanded. Starting to get second thoughts of doing this as Shōkan shrieked away from his hand.

"No please! Don't! This isn't just my life you're invading, it's others!" She practically begged him.

"Sorry, kid, but... you left us no choice."

"No, please don't do this! You're my friends, I swear, I don't mean you any harm!" She leaned away from his approaching hand as far as she could. Fear made her eyes began to cry again. "Don't look at them! Please, they're my memories, it's all I have! Please!"

"..." Soma's leg flinch as if to answer her call for help, but he pulled himself back in his spot. He couldn't be swayed by the cry of a wounded animal like that, it could still bite. But still... she looked so pitiful...

"This may hurt your head a little, since you're awake." Yuu informed her, to try and give her a far warning. Thinking that it would make things go faster by making direct contact close to her brain, he went to grip his hand around her forehead. "I'll try to make this quick."

"!"

.xxxxx.

Karen had just gotten back from training in the Training Ground with her new tantou. She was already getting a feel for it, like it was an extension of her arm. Perhaps soon she would be able to use it for its initial purpose. But that could wait for now... she had other things to take care of first.

Like... finding out where Shōkan went. She had gone to her room to check in on her, just to give her a quick peak to see if she was doing okay. Or a least make sure she was cuddling to the Terminal. But when she opened the door, she saw that Shōkan was gone. She knocked on the door of her other teammates close by to see if they would know where she went, but they weren't answering their door either.

Finally she decided to check the Sick Bay. Perhaps Shōkan was starting to feel unwell with a headache or what-not and decided to go to the Sick Bay to get some medicine.

Karen had made her way down to the Lab Floor, and was almost at the Sick Bay's door, when a gut curling scream came from inside Dr. Sakaki's lab. It was barely even muffled by the closed door.

"AHHHHHhhhhh! Ugh, it hurts! IT HURTS!" Karen began bump with adrenaline as she notice that it was Shōkan screaming.

"It only hurts because you're resisting! Let me in and the pain will go away!"

"!" Karen was disturbed by the words of her leader. What was he doing to her? Not waiting for her thoughts to stray to all possible scenarios, she readied her tantou and cautiously made her way to Dr. Sakaki's lab door. The cries of her teammate dying out, but still there. With no moment to lose, she barged through the door, ready to face whatever horrible scenario awaited her on the other side of it. "[What do you think you're doing?!]"

"!" The others gasped and shot their head to the door as if be caught red-handed, while Yuu was too busy focusing on the task at hand. Karen didn't know what to make of the situation she was seeing right now. Here she was, barging in on her team most likely conspiring in Dr. Sakaki's lab along with Dr. Sakaki as her leader did something to Shōkan while she was tied up. Although it only looked like he was touching her forehead, she looked like she was in pain, and she did not look willing.

"[Release her at once, you cad!]" Karen roared at him as she dashed at him, the others rushing to block her assault.

While this was going on in a matter of seconds, everything had slowed to what felt like hours to Yuu and Shōkan as Yuu forced a Resonance with blue-haired rookie New Type...

_.xxxxx._

_Yuu felt like he had been shot out to a lone house out in the wastelands. This home was far out in the wasteland, alone and isolated from others. Judging by the lack of other possible sentient life, the residence here wanted to be left alone. It seemed like a comfy house, a nice size and in good shape unlike those shacks Fenrir consider fair homes for the residence of the Outer Ghetto. It was the perfect place for a small family... where ever they are..._

_But that when he heard the sound of a swing squeaking behind him. Turning around in surprise to see that the family of the house was there the whole time. A young girl, most likely in her early teens, was climbing around in the lone tree close to the house while woman far in her pregnancy was pushing a small little four year old on a swing hanging on the tree. It was a simply little thing, made of nothing more than a block of wood tied along the tree with some rope, but it made the little girl happy as she giggle and kicked her feet. It all seemed like a normal moment of a growing family, except the mother was the only one with raven hair and sky blue eyes. Her daughters had the strange hair color of blue hue, with the eyes of purple lavender. _

_"Higher, mom, higher!" The child happily pleaded with giggles._

_"Alright, hang on." She warmly warned as she gave the child a little more push. "Look at you go, you're almost touching the sky."_

_"(Giggle) Mama, I can't do that."_

_"Really? It feels like you can." The woman played along with her little girl. "Are you having fun?"_

_"Yeah! But why can't I play with some other kids? The closest town is so far away." The child innocently pondered._

_"Well, we tend to stick to ourselves. Your father tries not to get involved with others." Her mother tried to explain while still swinging her daughter._

_"Why?"_

_"Well... because we're different. It's much safer this way."_

_"Well, why?"_

_"(Chuckle) Oh don't worry so much!" She was nearly going to burst in laughter at her daughter's cute questions. "If we can help, you'll never have to know why. Besides, when your brother gets here, there will be many, many chances for you to play together."_

_"(Sigh) I wish he was here now..." The child pouted._

_"Well it's a long ways yet. He's got a few more months until he appears, and he'll choose when he shows up. It's still a long way." Her mother sighed out before assuring to her. "But he'll get here."_

_"But what about school? I hear the kids learn so much there."_

_"And you'll learn so much here too, but it'll be home schooled, as long as you remember the things I teach you." Her mother pointed out. "In way, you're getting a better education. Because you'll have all the time to yourself to study and think about what you want to be when you grow up."_

_"But Mama, I already know what I want to be when I grow up."_

_"Oh? And what's that?"_

_"I want to be a tree!" The child happily announced, making her mother almost burst out laughing before she caught herself._

_"(Snicker) A tree, you say?"_

_"Yup!"_

_"And why, pray tell, would you want to be that?"_

_"Well... A tree is strong standing, never moved by anything, no matter how hard you push. Its roots stretch out forever under the earth connecting it to everyone. And its branches hold up all who need to rest, and it leaves give shade to those who need it, and it protects those who come to it from the dangers below. I want to be like a tree and protect everyone!" She happily explained before suddenly getting sad. "But...Fukushu says I can never be a tree..."_

_"... (Sigh) Yes, it's true. You can never be a tree..." The mother honestly admitted to her daughter, making the poor thing feel worse. "But... you can always become a tree for those you love and protect them like a tree."_

_"Really?" _

_"Hm mph," the mother happily nodded to the little thing as she looked up to her mother when she came in for another push._

_"So I can protect my family now?" She child happily smiled at the news._

_"Yes, when you become strong enough. Until then, we'll protect you. So grow up strong and become a tree."_

_"Kay!"_

_"Oh, look how far the sun as moved. Your father will becoming home soon." The poor woman pointed out in a slight flutter as she left the time slip by her. Bringing the swing to a stop, she help her little one hop off the swing as she gathered her girls. "Fukushu, get down from there! It's time to go inside. Come on,_ _Shōkan. Let's go get dinner ready for your daddy."_

_.xxxxx._

_The last scene ended with the poor wonder gently pushing along her little girl as her older one reluctantly came down from the tree. Now Yuu found himself further in the future from that day. For some reason, he knew that it was about six months later to be exact. Whether it was Shōkan's Resonance that was telling him this or not was unclear, either way he just knew._

_He was now further in the wastelands, away from the warm house of what appeared to be full of Maebures. Now he was out in an area that was like the City of Mercy, however... greenery had taken over most of the building areas instead of dirt and dust. Although the view was nice, he was wondering why he was there._

_That's when she passed him, the little girl with the blue hair that flapped behind her as she ran. She ran out of the run-down paved city and into the green hills, not stopping as she searched for something. That's when Yuu noticed a shadow of a silhouette standing on the hill next to them. The little girl was happy to see the figure out in the open in the middle of nowhere. She quickened her pace toward him, starting to run on her hands and feet as she climbed the hill. Tripping once, getting a good face load of grass and dirt, she quickly shook it off and got up to keep running toward the figure. _

_"Daddy, daddy!" She happily called out to the man standing on top of a steep hill, barely coming to a stop in time in front of him before she crashed into him. She looked up with a craned neck at the man she called father, his tall stature over her made him a giant to her. He had a giant camping bag filled to the brim with stuff he had scavenged in the area and beat up boots that told of the long road this man has walked. His short blue hair yet long bangs hung over his purple eyes as he looked back down at the little girl with the same purple eyes and blue hair as him looked up to him with a happy smile on her face. _

_"You in trouble, girl? Why'd you come out where Daddy works?" He almost sounded angrily disappointed in her for coming out this far in the wasteland. She knew this place was dangerous, especially for someone as small as her. She could be taken from them in one chomp with the right Aragami. _

_"I missed you. Mommy said you were gonna be close by soon, so I came to see you." She explained before her cute pouted as the thought that her father was angry at her made her sad. "Are you mad, Daddy?"_

_"(Sighhhh) No." He tiredly sighed out all the angry at her dangerous stunt, she was just too cute. Picking her up, he easily lifted her up in his strong arms. "Daddy can't stay mad at that sun kissed face."_

_"(Giggle) Yay!" She happily giggled with a big smile as her father tossed her in the air before catching her again and bringing their foreheads together in gentle contact. He couldn't help but smile as well as her sun filled laughter was contagious on his spirit._

_"Wait. Baby, does your mom know you're out here?"_

_"No."_

_"Aw crud. Let's get you home, she's probably crapping herself in worry right now."_

_"Eww, Daddy, that's gross." She giggled as her dad got that weird look on his face, it was one of the quirks he had when he knew he would be in trouble with the lady of the house when he got home. It was like he ate a sour apple with lemons, it always tickled her to see it._

_"Baby, you shouldn't do that to your mother. You know she's already tired out from taking care of your little brother."_

_"Hmph, Seigi is no fun. Mommy said he would be able to play with me. But all he does is eat, sleep, and poop."_

_"He's a baby, that's what they do. You were no exception when you were that age. In fact, you pooped more."_

_"Nuh-uh, take it back." She pouted in father's arms, cutely folding her arms under the other._

_"(Chuckle) Sorry, sweetie, but it's true. Just give him time, he'll come around once he learns how to play."_

_"He doesn't know how to play? Hmm... in that case, I'll teach him how to have fun! I'll be the best big sister ever."_

_"Heh, oh I bet you will." He chuckled, rustling her hair to get a bigger smile out of her. "And as the bigger sibling, it's up to you to look after him. Can I count on you for that, Shōkan?"_

_"Yup! I'll protect him no matter what!"_

_"That's my girl." He warmly smirked at his little girl in pride before a sound echoed through the city and out into the hills._

_ROAARRR!_

_"I didn't know there were tigers out here, Daddy."_

_"Okay, time to go, baby." Her father said hastily before speed walking out of the area, holding his daughter protectively close to his body._

_.xxxxx._

_It was now over three years later, and Shōkan was now seven. But things had gone to hell._

_Chaos had spewed outside onto their lawn as the children's mother pushed them toward the secret basement. It was big enough to fit at lease three rooms, but the children didn't like going down there. It was dark, damp, and squeaking sound coming from the wood from the floor above as people walked around kinda scared them. Their mother had covered up the basement entrance since the doors themselves scare her youngest children into thinking that the door was coming to pull them in by just looking at it. But now it would seem that she was pushing them towards it haunting doors now.  
_

_"But mommy, I don't like it down there." __Shōkan whined as her mother pushed them hastily.  
_

_"You'll just have to suck it up, sweetie. There's no time to lose." Their mother persisted as the relentless sounds of banging was heard from the front door._

_"But it's dark and creepy down there." __Shōkan protested, starting to fight against her mothers insisting hands. Only to fight a losing battle as the strength of her mother merely had her feet sliding along the wooden floor.  
_

_"Quit fooling around, __Shōkan! He's coming!" Her mother hissed at her with a panicked voice no louder than a whisper. The insistent banging kept on coming as who ever it was outside was trying to break down the door.  
_

_"Who's coming?" Fukushu asked, already picking up on her parents sudden panicked behavior. All day they had been barging up the windows and sealing up the doors, blocking them with whatever furniture they could find. Something was coming for them, and whatever is was... it had them scared._

_"The Boogieman." Was all their mother said in a panicked gasped._

_"The Boogieman? But he isn't real." __Shōkan as her mother burst opened the basement doors, pushing them towards its cold cemented stairs. "He's just a story that daddy told to scare us?"  
_

_"He's real, baby. You're daddy told you those stories to warn you." Her mother corrected in honest truth. Make-believe time was over, the monsters were real._

_"!" The children began to get scared, just like their mother._

_"Is he coming to get us?" Seigi asked his mother, clinching onto her arm as the fear was starting to make him cry._

_"Yes, sweetie, he is... But I won't let him get you." The banging sounds grew louder, along with the sound of sliding furniture from the force. Time was running out. Their mother gently gave them a push to keep going down the stairs. "Stay down here and hide, and no matter what you do, don't make a sound. You'll be fine, he'll never find you here."_

_"We can help mom, let us fight." __Shōkan huffed with determination, her little fist clinched in front of her.  
_

_"No, sweetie, you can't win this one." Their mother sadly shook her head at her little girl._

_"But you and daddy can't handle them alone. You need help."_

_"__Shōkan..."_

_"We can fight them as a family. And kick their butts back where they came from."_

_"__Shōkan-"_

_"Me and Seigi can throw rocks really good. And Fukushu is really good with her hands."_

_"__Shōkan-"_

_"We can fight together. Don't go face this on your own and leave us behind!"_

_"__Shōkan! For God's sake just be quiet and listen to me!" Her mother finally barked at her. Scared and angry that her daughter was wasting time arguing with her instead of hiding. "I'm only asking you for one thing, Just One Thing!"  
_

_"!" __Shōkan flinched, eyes almost watering since she had never had her mother yell at her before.  
_

_"Now, I want you to look after your little brother and hide somewhere safe! Can you do that for me?!"_

_"But, mom..."_

_"Fukushu, look after you're little brother and sister! Keep them safe!"_

_"Yes... okaa-san." Fukushu reluctantly yielded to her mother's request, most likely her last one._

_"Mommy?" __Shōkan began to panic as her big sister took both her and their little brother into her arms, leading them further into the darkness and away from their mother who was standing in the only light. A sad look came over her face as if she was looking at them for one last time...  
_

_"Be good for me, okay?" Tears started to escape from her eyes, betraying her false smile. "And no matter what you hear... don't come out..."_

_"Mom!" __Shōkan called out for her, in one last plead, only to have her mother shut the door on them. Leaving them in the darkness.  
_

_Fukushu continued to careful carry them down the stairs as all they had around them was darkness and the sound of their mother covering the doors again. The sound of dripping water, breaking through the crack in the walls from the underground water source, could be heard as the only teases of light came from the wooden floors above them. Fukushu had taken them into the covenant under the stairs and held them close, placing a hand over their mouths for a second as if to tell them to stay quiet._

_The basement was damp with insufferable darkness, the only tease of light came from the small cracks in the wood floor lining. But it didn't even light up a piece of the room, just gave them something to look at in the darkness. The darkness was a scary thing, especially for children. It heightens the other senses to make up for what the eyes were lacking, making most give in to the fear of their mind. And that's what it did to the little one's as they heard whoever was ramming at the door finally broke through._

_They heard their mothers screams along with their father's grunts._

_'Dammit, they got through!' Their father would roar out before fires could be heard. The haunting sound of flops could be heard as some of the tiny cracks of light were taken from them and the sound of dripping liquid grew louder. A metallic-rust smell started to burn their nose as the new dripping sounds invaded their darkness, making their stomachs churn with its stench. The sound of many marching feet came storming in to their kitchen. The haunting sound of their mother's scream grew louder as they were suddenly silenced by the low sound of a flop onto the wooden floor. _

_The horrible sound was too much for Seigi as he curled up into his sister's embraced. ____Shōkan cuddled him back as well, seeking comfort from the horrors the darkness brought upon them. _They could still hear struggling along with the sickening sound of bodies being dragged out. 

_'Lock them up in back carriage, chain them to the truck's walls if you must.' Came the sickening voice that would haunt their nightmares for weeks on end. 'Careful not to damage them, you idiots! I want my specimens to be in their best condition before I start my experiments.'_

_This one's footsteps were more slithery than the others, like a snake looking for more than just the meal in front of him. They couldn't see him, but they saw his long white lab-coat reflect a brighter light through the cracks as he walked by. He had a sickly laugh, it made the children shiver in fear, even the strong willed Fukushu. He laughed loud and long as he and some other unknown force dragged away their parents._

_All went silent as the sound of heavy vehicles drove further and further away from the house. But they didn't move until nightfall..._

_.xxxxx._

_It had been a day since the mysterious force had come out of nowhere and taken their parents. The sun a risen to reveal a beautiful morning, but it was just the same as a gray day in the children's eyes for all they cared. The children had a rough night as the younger two were now prone to night terrors as the haunting laughs and screams rang out through their dreams in a haunting darkness that consumed them. __Shōkan curled up with her brother, cuddling up to him to chase the bad dreams away, along with their own.  
_

_But now with no parents to look after to them, they would have to start fending for themselves. Which would be a hard thing for a seven and four year old. They barely had any idea what was going on. All they knew was, was that the Boogieman had taken their mommy and daddy away._

_"Fukushu... we're hungry..." __Shōkan whimpered to her big sister who was busy packing up a backpack. Thinking that her sister didn't hear her, she tried again. "Fukushu, we want something to eat..."  
_

_"Then make yourself some sandwiches! God, I don't care what you do, just look after yourselves for a while!" Fukushu huffed with a grunt as she packed the last thing she dubbed that she needed before placing the backpack on her back._

_"Wait, where are you going?" __Shōkan began to panic as Fukushu was doing the same rituals that their father did before he went out for a long scavenge hunt. She even had their father's weapons. He had taught her how to use them, but... it was never a good sign when she thought that she would need them.  
_

_"What does it look like? I'm going to get mom and dad back." Fukushu tsk at her sister in annoyance at her obvious question. "Look after Seigi while I'm gone. He better not be dead when I get back."_

_"No." __Shōkan pleaded with her sister to stay, clinging to the hem of Fukushu's shirt with all her might. "Don't leave us. We don't want to be alone."  
_

_"You won't be alone, you idiot. Seigi's here, and he's counting on you to be the big sister." Fukushu barked at her little sister as she looked down at her. Seventeen and already she would have to look after her siblings alone, she didn't think she could do it... The only thing that could help them now is if she got their parents back. "So suck it up, stop crying, and wait for me to come home with mom and dad."_

_"!" Her sister merely walked out of __Shōkan's tiny grip, nearly knocking the poor girl down as she tried to hold on. Sadden that she wasn't strong enough to stop her big sister from leaving them, she could only shout out her one plea. "Come back soon. Please come back soon!"  
_

_.xxxxx._

_It had been two weeks since Fukushu had left them. __Shōkan had developed a slight phobia of the dark since then, she wouldn't even notice she was doing it. But at nights she would find it hard to sleep alone, she wake up cuddling up with some object or toy that use to make her feel safe, or cuddling up with her brother for that matter. He didn't seem to mind that she was hogging his bed too, he was a little scared to be alone as well. And with Fukushu gone it only made their anxieties worst.  
_

_They feared that the Boogieman in the white lab-coat would return to get them just like their parents. A sudden sound would make them jump out of their skin, the creek in the windows and doors would make their hearts go crazy in fear. But the Boogieman never came back for them as they scared themselves ragged. _

_With Fukushu gone, __Shōkan had busied herself, cleaning up the mess that was made during the struggle. She had built up a sweat, moving the furniture back to place. And almost made herself sick as she cleaned up the stains on the kitchen floor that were most likely not tomato juice. She had unbarred the windows so she could keep an eye on Seigi while he played outside, out of fear that he would be snatched from her while she wasn't looking. But he didn't go far out of fear of being taken too, never passing pass the large tree with a swing.  
_

_Shōkan had watched all the times her mother would cook and had learned from her, but she wasn't allowed to use the stove or the oven. Not to mention she could barely reach them, so she settled on the both of them surviving off of jelly sandwiches. She had once heard stories of jelly sandwiches with peanut-butter that were delicious, but peanuts were a rare commodity that didn't grow in their region in general, so they would have to settle for jelly sandwiches made from the jellies of wild berries and fruits. She would switch the type of jelly every now and then to keep the food from getting bland. Seigi didn't seem to mind having jelly sandwiches everyday, but she feared he would soon tire of them. She had hoped Fukushu would return soon with their mom and dad soon before they ran out of food.  
_

_And like wishing upon a star, it had come true. Fukushu had burst in through the back door as a shower storm raged on outside, startling __Shōkan and Seigi into a scare until they realized it was her. __Shōkan, who was make dinner sandwiches at the time, clinched onto the butter knife in her hands, ready to put up a fight. While Seigi, who was waiting in the living room next to the kitchen, hid behind their father's chair in fear. But as they looked over Fukushu, their fears began to calm as a sudden worry took over them.  
_

_A dead look, and yet so sad, took over Fukushu's face as the rain dripped down from her face. Splatters of blood stained her shirt, and her pants were ripped in places as if sliced by a fence or something sharp and jagged._

_"Fukushu? Where's mom and daddy?" __Shōkan asked as she noticed that Fukushu were the only one there.  
_

_"Pack your things guys." Fukushu ordered out of nowhere, dropping her backpack onto the kitchen counter as she walked into the rooms. "Take whatever you can. We're leaving this place."_

_"Leaving? Where are we going, Sis?" Seigi asked from his spot looking over the chair._

_"Anywhere but here... One of the close towns perhaps." Fukushu sighed, swiping the dripping rain from her hair out of her face as she sat down on one of the kitchen stools. "Either way, we can't stay here."_

_"But, why?"_

_"Don't ask questions, Seigi! Just to as I say!" Fukushu barked tiredly, she was in no mood for her siblings' questioning._

_"Okay!" Seigi yelp before running up to his room to take whatever he could carry and packing it. But __Shōkan remained unmoving, sliding the plate of sandwiches over to Fukushu who silently took one in exhausted hunger.  
_

_"Fukushu... where's mommy and daddy?" She insisted on an answer, refusing to move until she got one._

_"..." Fukushu stared into her little sister's eyes, looking for something that __Shōkan had no idea what it was. Even the flash of lightning or the sound of thunder that followed afterwards didn't make either of them budge. Finally sighing out with closing eyes, Fukushu reached into her pants pockets and pulled out bloodied wedding rings. __Shōkan recognized them in a heartbeat, and it made her pulse stop. "They're not coming back..."  
_

_"!" The news was devastating, she could feel the tears coming on but they refused to come out. Perhaps her body already knew that now wasn't the time for mourning._

_"It's no longer safe here." Fukushu informed her little sister before getting up on her feet again and heading toward her own room. "We have to go."_

_"..." The city... __Shōkan had always wanted to go to a town, filled with many people and many sights. But... she wanted to go as a family, not a broken one...  
_

_.xxxxx._

_It was a long walk in the rain for the little ones. They struggled to keep up with their big sister's long strides as the rain battered their rain coats. They carried very little with them, only what they needed. Fukushu had put her foot down when she instructed to them that once they had found a place to settle down, she would return to their house to start selling off somethings in order for them to make ends-meet. She would have to make quick trips if she wanted to get the job done before scavengers started looting the place. At least they wouldn't loose any memorable photos if that were to happened. If there was one thing their parents had taught them all their lives, it was 'no photos'. So they wouldn't have anything to remember their parents by... only their memories...  
_

_This was to be their first stop, if they couldn't find anything they would keep going into the next town. But __Shōkan and Seigi had hoped they would find something here, for they were cold and the darkness scared them. __Shōkan clinked onto her brother's little hand as she followed behind their big sister. Fukushu stayed strong, showing no signs of fatigue as she lead her little siblings on in the rain. The town seemed like a small tight-knit community, probably filled with friendly people of model character since no one was roaming the streets.  
_

_The guard over the town's border walls had let them in, whether out of pity or for the fact he didn't see three kids wondering in from the wastelands as a threat they didn't know. But what they did know was that they would have to find a place for the night before the rain soaked them to the bone. But most of the houses seemed occupied, lights turned off as the residents called it in for the night, paying no mind to the kids wondering the streets. All except one house with the lights still on..._

_The silhouette of figure stood in the house's window, looking out into the night rain when it saw the three of them pass by. Startling them as the figure ran from the window and barged out of the door, making Fukushu stand protectively in front of her little siblings as her hands itched for something hidden in her back pocket. The figure had turned out to be a young man still in his teens. His onyx hair soaking in the rain as in his rush he had forgotten to put on a coat. The only thing worth taking a second to grab in his mind was a lantern. He had huffed looking down as he stopped in his tracks at the border of his property, still too close for comfort for them. He finally looked up to reveal his breath taking blue eyes._

_"Hey... looks like you folks aren't from around here." He spoke to them with a friendly grin, trying to ease the nervous group into a friendly conversation._

_"We aren't." Fukushu flatly answered, still keeping one of her hands close to her back pocket just in case._

_"Do you guys have a place to stay? It's raining cats and dogs out here." He jokingly commented as he looked up to the sky._

_"Yes we noticed." Fukushu had to fight off rolling her eyes as this guy stated the obvious. "We're looking for a place."_

_"We're looking for a new home." Seigi honestly answered before getting a pop on the back of his head from Fukushu for giving away too much information to a complete stranger._

_"Oh? Then you've come to the right place. This is a friendly place to start a new beginning, although your neighbors will tend to gossip, they're harmless." The young man waved off in good cheer that they might be possibly taking up residence in his town. They didn't get many new faces out there, especially ones like these three or the big sister for that matter. That's when a loud thunder boom rang out through the sky, making the young man's good cheer turn into concern. "But it's too dark to be house searching now. If you want, you can stay in my house for the night."_

_"Sorry." Fukushu instantly decline, bring her siblings closer to her. "We don't accept offers from strangers."_

_"What? Oh come on, I don't bite. Honest. Besides, it'd be a sad world if you can't even trust the kindness of a stranger."_

_"Yes... the world 'is' a sad place..." Fukushu bitterly commented in agreement. _

_"..." The young man couldn't help but look on in pity at Fukushu's heart breaking words. Making him wonder what could have happened to them to make such a young lady loose the sense of wonder in her eyes. "Well... if you won't accept my offer of getting you guys out of the rain, then... at least let me take you to an empty house close by."_

_"If there was a house close by then why didn't you offer us that in the first place?" Fukushu questioned suspiciously._

_"Well... it's kinda in poor condition." The young man nervously scratched his cheek with his finger as he answered her question. "No body wants to live in it in the state it's currently in. But since you guys are in a desperate need at the moment, I guess it'll have to do."_

_"..."_

_"Come on," the young man pointed his head in the direction they would need to go. They backed away as he crossed his property border to move in front of them, Fukushu remained cautious with his every move. But he didn't seem to mind as he started walking forward in the rain with his lantern to guide them. "The night is slowly passing."_

_"..." Fukushu silently followed behind him as she kept her brother and sister close._

_"To be honest, I was a little surprised to see three strangers with your features walking around in the rain." The young man said, starting small talk with them as they continued to walk down the street. The lantern swinging in the wind, made the only other sound that went against the wind and the pouring rain. "I only met one guy like that. A big guy with crazy blue hair and purple eyes, always came around to trade in the market."_

_"That's our Daddy!" __Shōkan happily pointed out before Fukushu shook her hand in her grip in disapproval.  
_

_"Oh, is that right? I thought you two looked similar." The young man happily smiled down to __Shōkan with the slight turn of his head to look back. "We've seen him come around a lot that we wondered why he never stayed. Even started up crazy rumors to explain our theories. We all saw the ring on his finger, so some of the local ladies use to gossip that he was such a great lover that he couldn't stay in towns because his wife would scream too loud."_

_"?"_

_"I would appreciate it if you didn't talk about such things to my four year-old and seven year-old brother and sister." Fukushu nearly growled at him, making the young man break into a nervous sweat._

_"Sorry, I tend to loose myself in a conversation. The neighbors always said that about me." He nervously rubbed the back of his head with his free and with an awkward grin before his warm smile returned as he started talking to ____Shōkan again. "_So where is your daddy now? Surely you lot aren't runaways?"  


_"He's gone." Fukushu simply answered, ending it there. "They're both gone."_

_"Oh... I... I'm sorry." He sincerely gave them his condolences. "My parents are gone too. Loss them in the Militia. Funny how I join the same thing that took my parents."_

_"..." Fukushu simply stared at him as he struggled out a chuckle. They had made a turn to the left after two blocks and bumped into an old house at the end of the road. The guy was right about one thing... the place was a wreck._

_"The place could use some touch-ups. But nothing that we couldn't fix." The young man nervously explained before grunting out as he tore down the wooden bars on the door. "The others have condemned the place, but I think this place just needs the love of a human touch again."_

_"..." Fukushu cautiously walked in with her little siblings, sheltering themselves from the rain as they looked around the place. It was dusty, old, cobwebs were everywhere, and the floor creaked._

_"If you can wait for the morning. I can start fixing this place up for you." The young man nervously answered as his words began to pick up spend. "I'm only in the Reserves, so I work mostly in construction when I'm not called in. I can get me and the guys to come in and fix this place up."_

_"..."_

_"Or just me! It can be just me if you're not comfortable with strangers!" He nervously offered as he saw Fukushu's unmoving stare toward him. "Huh? You'll like the school in these parts. It's great for the little ones. I'm sure your sister will make tons of friends in second grade, along with your brother in pre-school."_

_"Why are you doing this?" Fukushu finally spoke to him after a long time of silence. "Why are you helping us?"_

_"Huh? Uh... I don't know, I'm weird I guess." The guy brainlessly answered. "I just felt like I would regret it if I let you just walk by..." _

_"..." She stared in to his eyes, even as he looked down toward the floor and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. His words were sincere... "What's your name, weirdo."_

_"!" He couldn't help but look up as she gave him the playfully teasing nickname. Her tone may have been plain, but his heart could still pick up the smirk behind her words. "It's Rie... Rie Okura."_

_"Hmph, Fukushu." Fukushu replied back, giving him a small smile she rarely gave to anyone. "I guess we'll be seeing you tomorrow, Rie."_

_.xxxxx._

_Shōkan was twelve now, and things had made a sudden turn from the possibly getting better from a bad thing to a worse. She was hiding behind the remains of a broken wall, catching her breath as she held a knife close to her. Things weren't looking good, half of her unit was dead, she was separated from the rest, and a Vajratail was sniffing her out. It would be only a matter of time before it found her. She was out of ammo, and all she had on her was a knife to defend herself.  
_

_She couldn't run, and she couldn't call for help, she was stranded. In situations like this, their was only one option left to her. Steadying herself she rushed out of her hiding spot and charged at the Vajratail like a bull. The Aragami roared at its approaching prey, only to be knocked down as the poor girl tackled it. They tumbled around a little, the Vajratail always trying to go for the bite when it was on top. Only to miss and have the girl counter its lock over her and move herself as the top aggressor._

_Roaring at the beast below her with crazed eyes, she began stabbing relentlessly into the beast. Not caring to cease as it cried out and spattered her uniform with its blood. She got no thrill from her actions, nor did she get that crazy blood lust that most of the others talked about once you stabbed your blade into an enemy, she simply wanted to survive. All of their actions toward the Aragami seemed pointless, their weapons didn't seem to stop the Aragami's regenerative abilities as they only temporarily brought the Aragami down. _

_But the apparent purpose of the Militia was to make the Aragami fear the humans, enough to make them weary of coming even close to their city walls. It had worked for the most part, the Aragami were always hungry but they weren't stupid. They wouldn't constantly go through pain for a prey that was too troublesome to even catch. Most of the Aragami learned to stay away. However... some were apparently trained to be domesticated, or so it seemed to Yuu according to __Shōkan's memories.  
_

_Shōkan had apparently stabbed the Vajratail enough to keep it down for a while. It most likely learned its lesson about thinking twice before it tries to eat something smaller than it. Calming her breath after the adrenaline rush, __Shōkan stood up off the Vajratail and slowly started to step away from it.  
_

_"!" She was tripped as something wrapped around her ankle. Tendrils, she followed the source to see that they belonged to a Cocoon Maiden that popped out from the ground. Dragging its caught prey towards it, the Cocoon Maiden opened its wide chest of a mouth in welcoming of the incoming feast. _

_Shōkan struggled to get out of its grip, kicking and slicing at whatever she could. The people of the wastelands knew their Aragami. And if their was one thing to beware of the Cocoon Maiden, once you got into its chests you were dead. The needles inside it would pierce you dead within a second, long before the acid started to break you down. __Shōkan had to move fast, she was running out of time. But the Cocoon Maiden eventually wrapped its tendrils all around __Shōkan, ceasing her struggles as it dragged her in. Thinking this would be the end, __Shōkan braced herself for the slight moment of pain. But it never came.  
_

_BANG!_

_"!" Her eyes shot open as the loud flop of the Aragami rang out as it landed headless beside her. Freaking out a little, __Shōkan kicked her way out of its tendrils and crawled away from its temporarily dead body. She kept crawling back until she hit a stop at a pair of legs.  
_

_"This is why I tell you to look around, bonehead." Fukushu groaned down at her. "One of these days your lack of awareness is going to get you killed and you won't even know it."_

_"Shut up, Sis... don't... jinx me..."_

_.xxxxx._

_"You can't be serious?" Fukushu raised an eyebrow in disbelief of what her little sister had just said to her._

_"I am serious. I wanna do something that more beneficial than what the Militia is doing. I think I want to join a Guild."_

_"No, you mean you want to join a Gang."_

_"Gang, Guild, what's the difference?"_

_"A lot of things, actually." Fukushu huffed out, but still sounding as if this didn't concern her much. Crossing her arms as she sat in the living room listening to what __Shōkan had to say. The place had come a long way since they had first come there years back, it actually looked like a home now. But still lacked in the family photos. "And you've been skipping school for this nonsense?"  
_

_"Tsk, so the teachers have been talking to you? So what, are you going to stop me now?"_

_"No." Fukushu calmly stated. "This is your stupid actions, your stupid choice. I want to see how far it will take you before you see how stupid it is yourself."_

_"Hmph!" She began to turn red in embarrassing rage as she was being told off by her older sister. She was the stronger of the two and __Shōkan had looked up to her, especially since her skilled had lead Fukushu to the top in the town's Militia to a spot of power in only a couple of years. To hear her sister blatantly call her life plan stupid tore at her pride. "Fine, just watch me then! I'll show you how much I can do for the better outside the chains of societies laws! Then you can eat your own words!"  
_

_"How very mature of you. Throwing a tantrum like a spoiled child, I'm starting to think I've been too soft on you."_

_"Fine, be a jerk! Why don't you just stop taking your tension out on us and marry Rie already?!" __Shōkan shot back at her sister before storming out the door. "Your both good for each other! He naturally balances off your bitchiness!"  
_

_"Tst... stubborn brat..." Fukushu spat out from the whisper of her tongue as __Shōkan had already left.  
_

_Stomping down the street in a furious huff, __Shōkan marched on to her destination. Down a path that would lead her to a dark place that she would learn to take control of and rule in the years to come. She could hear her heart beating in excitement as the path she had chosen for herself was in her grasp. Grinning to herself she almost didn't notice Rie passing her by.  
_

_Over the years, Rie had become an honorary older brother to them. But something more to Fukushu, as the younger siblings noticed the tension between the two. Rie had always come over to help out, just to see her. He'd try everything and almost anything to get a smile out of Fukushu. Now he loved __Shōkan and Seiji, that was fact, but he was crazy about Fukushu. Even looked after her when she joined the Militia with him, although... she had proven countless times that she didn't need to be looked after. The two had almost become inseparable, and seemed to be waiting for the other make something happen. They didn't know what exactly, but they wanted it to happen none the less.  
_

_"__Shōkan, please tell me Fukushu talked you out of it, kid?" Rie was practically pleading. He already knew about __Shōkan's career choice, she had already told him, she tells him everything. And he knew how hard it was to get out of that lifestyle once it sucked you in, it could pull you in too deep until you'd forget who you once were. He already noticed how the short time in the Militia had already took the sparkle out of her eyes, what else could be taken from her if she joined the Underworld.  
_

_"Hey, Rie-nii-san." She had reached for something in her pocket, shoving it onto his chest as she passed by him, making him instinctively catch it with one of his hands. He looked down, opening his closed hand over the objects, only to be surprised at what they were. Looking up and turning his head to stare at __Shōkan in shock, she simply smirked at him. "Just do it, you wimp."  
_

_"..." He looked back down at the gift she had left him in his hands as she walked away. Fukushu had once told him about these things in one of their many conversations together. She thought she had left them at the old house after she had placed them down, but apparently __Shōkan had picked them back up again. Probably just to make sure Fukushu didn't sell them while they were down at their ends meet. And now she was giving them to him... _

_Her parents' wedding rings.  
_

_.xxxxx._

_Things were starting to get harder for Yuu, as if something was trying to force him out. The memories were starting to break apart into smaller fragments. They were getting harder to understand as an unknown force was getting in the way._

_But he had found himself barely a year later in __Shōkan's memories. Two guys in black were holding a broken man down while __Shōkan stood behind them in her own black outfit.  
_

_"I'm afraid you've cheated our turf for the last time, sir. You've stolen food from the mouths of our children for far too long. It's time that you learned your lesson." A woman in a dark backless dress said in fake sympathy. The tattoo on her back cover by her hair, which in turn was covered with the black clothed veil. She turned to __Shōkan in a barked command. "__Shōkan, break his legs."  
_

_"Heh, with pleasure..."_

_"AHHH!"_

_.xxxxx._

_"Fukushu, please eat. You must eat." __Shōkan pleaded with her sister as she stared blankly into nothingness as they sat at their kitchen's island.  
_

_"..." Fukushu had been out of it for days since the disappearance of her husband and her baby girl. Nearly a year had passed, and Fukushu had now wore their mother's wedding ring on her finger. Rie had finally sucked up the courage to ask Fukushu to marry him.  
_

_"Starving yourself isn't going to bring them back any sooner." __Shōkan huffed in concern, sliding a plate of food toward Fukushu. But she ignored and continue to stare into nothing, wallowing in her self pity.  
_

_Aside from the trouble __Shōkan would cause with Famine, they lived happily together. Fukushu had moved in with Rie to start a family of her own, leaving __Shōkanto look after their younger brother. __Shōkan had chosen the dark path of street justice, but Fukushu knew that __Shōkan never abandoned or screwed over family. __Shōkan would take care of Seiji, just like she always did. She skipped school more and more with each passing day, but she never allowed it to effect Seiji, nor did she ever bring work home with her.  
_

_Things had began to flow into a norm as Fukushu followed the light with the Militia, her strict fist and strong will guiding her path and the path of others. While __Shōkan followed the darkness of the Riders, her swift strikes rising her up in the ranks of Famine and winning the favor of Famine herself. Famine liked what she saw in the young up start, and was hoping to soon pass on the mark of Famine to her. But things soon turned downhill when they had been spotted by the Boogieman by a twisted encounter in the wastelands. They barely got away without a trail, but the bastard just kept coming back. Day in and day out, trying to see if he could catch them again, to the point of insanity.  
_

_And as __Shōkan had told the others, he did finally got one. He got Rie... along with Kitai. The guilt was eating Fukushu alive, she told him to take Kitai for a walk, she said the sunlight would be good for her. Her heart nearly dropped to her feet when the sun went down and they didn't come back that day. Rie was a little scatterbrained at times, he probably didn't notice that he went out too far. And Fukushu... forgot to tell him to stay out of that certain area.  
_

_"This is all my fault..."_

_"?!" __Shōkan was caught off guard by her sister's weak whimper. Her sister was so strong, almost brutal, she felt like she was doing her sister an injustice by looking at her while in this state.  
_

_"I sent them out there. I sent him out there into that 'monsters' hands. I gave that 'thing' my baby!" She began to wail into her hands, her body shaking with sorrow. Fukushu hadn't eaten in days due to her worry and guilt, she was starting to wither away. __Shōkan didn't like it at all, calling away her duties to Famine for a little while, she had taken Fukushu back home with her so she wouldn't be alone while she was like this, and try and get her to eat something. She did her best not to let Seiji see Fukushu like this, it would break his heart.  
_

_"How could you have known this would happen?! There's nothing you could've done!" __Shōkan insisted, trying to get keep her sister out of this destructive path.  
_

_"I could've not told him to go out. My God... How could I've not notice that that bastard would spot out a baby with blue hair and purple eyes?!"_

_"How could he have seen Kitai for that matter?! The bastard has gotten better with his tracking skill! We need to step it up a notch too if we're going to get them back!"_

_"We're not getting them back, __Shōkan..." _

_"What do you mean?! Are you just going to give up?! That's your husband and child! We at least have to try!"_

_"It's hopeless, __Shōkan." _

_"Dammit, Fukushu, I know we couldn't save mom or dad. But we were just kids then, we can fight bac-"_

_"You weren't there, __Shōkan!" Fukushu roared out her before breaking down into a heartbreak whimper as the tears began to escape her eyes again. "You have no idea what he did..."  
_

_"..." Then the fear came, Yuu could feel it as the question __Shōkan had tried so hard for years to avoid had finally come back to haunt her. "What exactly... happened to them...?"  
_

_"Enough for me to know that my baby is not coming back." Her whimpers became louder and the tears poured out more. "Enough to know my husband is most likely in pieces like our parents!"_

_"!" Her heart stopped._

_"Oh God, her eyes! That monster could have gouged out her eyes too!" She began to wail into her hands with more energy as she began to break. _

_"..." __Shōkan didn't know what to say, the truth disturbed her more than the years she had spent trying to avoid it. Leaning over to her sister, she gently rubbed her trembling back. "C-come on sis, as if Rie would let that happen. Rie-nii-san is too strong to let anything happen to his baby girl."  
_

_"Dad was strong too, and he couldn't do anything to save mom or himself."_

_"..." She flinched, she knew Fukushu was in an emotional state and didn't think about what she said, but her words stung. Before __Shōkan could say anymore the town sirens went off. "!"  
_

_"What's going on?" Fukushu calmed down a little, today wasn't scheduled for a drill testing._

_"Sounds like a danger has gotten over our walls."_

_"Let's go." Fukushu stubbornly shot up from her seat and started marching out of the house, grabbing her rifle that was resting by the doorway._

_"Wait, what about your food?!"_

_"Duty calls first."_

_"Damn it!" __Shōkan roared in frustration, grabbing a crowbar that was leaning on the side of her chair before following her sister out. She was not in her best condition right now, if anything she would just get herself seriously hurt if she went out alone.  
_

_At this point, __Shōkan was trying out different types of weapons. But none of them seemed to fit her, she would have to find the one the clicked for her if she ever wanted to truly stand out in Famine. But for now, she would just have to make due with what she had.  
_

_Whatever it was that had gotten through the wall must have been something big because everyone was in an uproar or panicking in the streets. A rumble began to shake the ground beneath their feet, whatever it was that gotten through it was big... and coming their way._

_"This is it, Sho! Stand or die!"_

_"I rather not die, thank you very much." __Shōkan huffed out before she noticed the rage in her sister's eyes as she looked toward the sounds of the incoming stomping feet. "Try not to be too rough on it, Fuku, okay?"  
_

_But the memory started to break apart, it was getting harder to see anything as the scene faded and flickered back to Yuu as he was once again being forced out._

_The image would dim and flicker back, making one more seem like the girls were intense and ready for action and then sudden they were heartbroken and shell-shocked. It was getting harder to hear what they were saying as the scene got dimmer with each flicker. But he could have sworn he heard the cry of a baby, and Fukushu had cried out loud enough even in the fading memory for Yuu to hear as she ran up to something and fell to her knees as she wrapped her arms around it. Whatever it was the memory would not allow Yuu to see it. Dimming out all the way before he could even get a glimpse._

_"Oh God, Rie! (Wailing)!"_

_.xxxxx._

_He would pay..._

_That bastard of a scientist had stolen the ones who were most precious to her and dared to try again._

_And she would make him pay..._

_By the blood running through her veins, she would make him pay!_

_.xxxxx._

_"Can you believe he came back here while looking like that? I can't believe that the guards even allowed him to stay." Huff one of the neighboring gossiping women, whispering loudly as if they didn't care that Fukushu and __Shōkan were passing by as they obviously talking about Rie. Even if Yuu didn't fully know it, he knew they were talking about Rie.  
_

_Fukushu was finally recovering as she pulled herself together at the return of her husband and child. She was only taking patrols for a while until her strength got back up. But __Shōkan decided to follow her, just for a little while until she knew she was okay.  
_

_"Hmph, that's cause the Captain of the Guard pulled in a favor sense it was her 'beloved husband'. If you call what left of the man a husband." The other woman huffed, making Fukushu clinch her fist in rage as both sisters' eyes twitched in frustration._

_"Still can you believe that thing came crawling back here with their baby in its arms? It was simply frightening! I thought he was going to crush her in his hands, what with those chains around him making him look like an escaped beast!"_

_"No, what I find more shocking is that Fukushu welcomed that thing back into her home. If I were her, I would kick it to the curve and let it fend for itself in the wastelands. I hear she still treats that thing like her husband."_

_"She goes to bed with that thing?! How repulsive!"_

_"You go to bed with that thing you call a husband that snores like a storm and you sleep just fine!" __Shōkan roared at the gossiping women in frustration at their judging tone. "Go torment someone else's life you bunch of buzzards!"  
_

_"!" They scattered, fleeing the crime with their tails between their legs. Although many had come to respect and care for the Maebures that had seemly appeared out of nowhere and became a driving force in the town's defenses, in the light and in the shadows, they still held a twinge of fear for the abnormal siblings._

_"Tst, ignorant sows." __Shōkan growled under breath at the fleeing gossipers before turning to her crestfallen sister. "Don't worry about what those old hags say. At least you got him back alive."  
_

_"Yes... Thank God I got both of them returned to me."_

_"..." Suddenly __Shōkan felt awkward, looking everywhere but at her sister. "Sooo... do you guys cuddle together, or do you stilllll...?"  
_

_"He likes to wrap around me and hold me close." Fukushu teased, smirking with glee as her sister got awkward at the topic. "He snuggles me so good."_

_"God! Never mind, I wish I never asked."_

_.xxxxx._

_"Come one, Rie. Be a good sport and help me train." __Shōkan playfully pleaded, swing a chain around in her hand. "I think I found my talent, but I need practice honing it in combat."  
_

_"..." The memory would flicker off, it wouldn't allow Yuu to see Rie. For that matter, Rie wasn't even talking. It disturbed Yuu to see such a talkative and friendly person go suddenly silent._

_"You're the perfect sparring buddy. At least I know you won't bite me back."_

_"..."_

_"Come on, pleeasee." She pouted, trying to get out her puppy eyes._

_"(Huff)!"_

_"Good sport!" She praised to him in thanks. "Now let's round up!"_

_"..."_

_"Sorry... too demeaning?"_

_"Tsk!"_

_"Yeah, yeah, I guess so. But you get what I mean." She apologized before getting into a fighting position. "Alright, I'm ready..."_

_She needed this... she needed to get stronger... if she ever planned to-_

_.xxxxx._

_"Deaaath." __Shōkan cooed out, the chains wrapped around her waist jiggling as she skipped toward the boy in white sitting on a crumbled pillar out in wreckage area of the old time cities.  
_

_"..." He shifted his eyes toward her, giving her a nod in greeting._

_"Thanks for coming to my Leadership Annunciation Trial, it was really nice to have your support." She stopped about 3 yards away from him, cutely holding her hands behind her back as she rolled on the ball of her feet. "Though, that branding stung something fierce."_

_"..." He didn't say anything, the boy just turned his head toward her, tilting it a little. But his eyes spoke of the words 'why are you here?'_

_"Right, sorry to drone on." She chuckled, rubbing the back of her head before getting down to business. "I kinda need your permission to cross into your turf. There's this stiff that dared to cross me and I need to teach him why he should never mess with a Rider."_

_"..."_

_"I won't be any trouble. It'll be just me, and I'll get him out of your hair lick-a-d-split."_

_"Hmph."_

_"Oh come on, don't be like that. Us boss Riders have to stick together. If someone messes with one of us, they mess with us all. Isn't that what the Riders about, so please."_

_"..."_

_"..." He wasn't going to budge, she knew what he wanted. "(Sigh) Wanna help bring him down?"_

_"!" The boy jumped from his seat on the pillar, landing down in front of __Shōkan, his scythe dangerously gleaming in the light. "I call dibs if he has a group."_

_"Heh, that's my boy." She smirked before yanking her chain to get that tension sound. "Let's go condemn the fallen."  
_

_.xxxxx._

_A few more years had passed when __Shōkan got a knock on her door. A little grumpy about being interrupted on one of her few time off days, she stomped to the door ready to curse a storm on whoever was on the other side.  
_

_"!" But the fight left her as she saw the cute little head of short purple hair, barely reaching down to its owner's shoulder, with big watery purple eyes. Her little niece was standing at her doorstep... and she was covered in bruises. She look back,, the poor thing was trying to keep herself from crying. "Kitai?! What on Earth happened to you?! My poor baby!"_

_"..." The little girl held back a whimper as her aunt pulled her in for a comforting hug, careful not to hold her too tightly just in case one of the bruises stung. Then she pulled back to look her over to see if anything was seriously damaged._

_"Who did this to you? Are you being bullied?! I swear to God, I'll kill'em!" Little did her niece know that her threat was real. She had only gone so far as to beaten some people close to dead, but she was willing to cross the line for the cute three year old standing on her doorstep._

_"I got in a fight with the neighborhood kids." She whimpered, rubbing the invisible tears out of her eyes._

_"What? Why?"_

_"They were saying mean things about my Daddy again." She angrily pouted, her lip quivering in frustration. "They keep calling him a monster."_

_"!"_

_"And they kept calling me the 'monster's kid' so I punched them and wouldn't stop until they apologized. But they didn't, they just ran. It made me so mad."_

_"That's cause you feel like you still lost." __Shōkan explained as she tried to calm herself down. It wouldn't look good if she went around beating up children, this was going to have to be Kitai's fight. "But baby, why didn't you go to your parents first?"  
_

_"..." Kitai couldn't answer, only looking down in shame._

_"I see... you're such a good kid, Kitai." __Shōkan smiled at her, while gently rustling her hair. The poor child didn't want to upset her parents, if she was being teased over her dad by the kids who knows what the parents were saying.  
_

_"Why do they keep picking on my Daddy? He didn't do anything wrong!"_

_"I know, Sweetie." She gently sooth to the child as she pulled her back in for a hug. "Sometimes... kids can be innocently cruel."_

_"What do you mean? Cruel is cruel?"_

_"Yes, but... there are other times when you don't even know you're being cruel, especially when you're scared, and it takes time and growing up to realize that it is." __Shōkan tried to explain to the three year-old. "They're stupid right now, and they don't even know it yet. So forgive them for now, until they realize that what they're doing is stupid."  
_

_"Hmm... I'll try." The little girl grumbled with puffed cheeks._

_"Hey, look on the bright side. You already kicked their butts, so they know not to mess with you anymore." __Shōkan smirked at her, trying to cheer her up. "They'll never talk smack about your dad around you again."  
_

_"Really?" She gasped in happy awe, making __Shōkan chuckle warmly inside as the twinkle had returned to her innocent eyes.  
_

_"Hm mpf." __Shōkan nodded to her with a smile.  
_

_"So I protected my family then?"_

_"Hm, yes, you did..." Getting back on her feet again, she picked up her niece and held her by her side. "Now let's say we clean you up and have a nice sandwich."_

_"Strawberry jelly?"_

_"What ever you want."_

_"Yay!" She happily wrapped her little arms around her auntie's neck. "Thank you, Auntie!"_

_"Oh you are just so cute!"_

_.xxxxx._

_"Seiji, what are you doing? School started an hour ago?" __Shōkan barked at her little brother who was still sitting in the living room, not even ready to go outside.  
_

_"You don't seem to care for school, I don't see why I have to." Seigi shot back in a bit of arrogance, __Shōkan had no idea where this defiance was coming from. He use to be so obedient to her commands, but now he repelled against her with every turn he could. Must be from the start of his pre-teens, she had prayed she wasn't that bad with Fukushu.  
_

_"If I didn't care, I wouldn't still be standing here arguing with you about it!" She growled at him, tired of his rebellious nature. "Now get off your ass, and get to school!"_

_"Hell no, school is stupid. The teachers are stupid, the students are stupid, it's just a waste of my time." He huffed back at her. "You had the right idea, dropping out when you did. The stuff they're feeding us is crap."_

_"There's nothing crappy about an education! Knowledge is power, it could save your life one day!"_

_"Tst, yeah right. Like knowing the derivative of a cosine is ever going to save me from an Aragami or a thug. All I need is street smarts."_

_"The mere fact you said that means you're already starting to get dumb! You still have many opportunities still stretched out before you, don't throw them all away over this dumb shit!"_

_"I already have my opportunities, the Militia is trying to recruit me and the local gangs have been noticing my potential."_

_"...What?"_

_"Isn't this great, now I can be just like you or Fukushu." He didn't get to say more, __Shōkan had punched him hard, right in the cheek. Knocking him out of his chair and onto the ground. "Ow! God... what's you're problem?!"  
_

_"BAKA!"_

_"!"_

_"We didn't fight so hard to raise you just so you can throw it all away! We nearly risked everything just so you wouldn't have to! Think about all the things Fukushu went through just to make ends meet for us, she fought so you could even 'get' an education. Don't just go shoving it back in her face!"_

_"Oh that's reeaaallll nice coming from the pot! You don't even go to school anymore!"_

_"And I regret it!"_

_"!"_

_"I regret it with every fiber of my being." __Shōkan honestly confessed to her brother, showing him her inner demons. "I wish I could go back, I wish I had more than just a 7th grade education. I wanted to learn, I loved to read. But I was too blind to see it when Fukushu tried to warn me. Now the only education I gained out there was how much inventory was I suppose to have and how many punches could a man take before he dies..."  
_

_"..."_

_"Soon I began to hate Fukushu, for letting me walk out... not stopping me. But then I realized the fault was mine. I did this... I walked down this path myself. And now the chance to turn around is almost gone. There's so much I need to learn, so much I need to catch up if I wish to ever graduate with a High School education. If only I could just go back, but... it's hard leaving the game once you've risen to the top."_

_"..."_

_"You don't want to be me, Seiji. I don't even want to be me... I practically beat up guys just to cover away the pain of what I've lost, of the things I most likely am never going to have. Yes, I have power now, but... was it really worth the hollowness I feel inside."_

_"..." Seiji didn't know what to do as the fight had suddenly left his sister and a dark cloud surrounded her. She slumped down into the chair he was once in, staring off into the horizon as her eyes zoned out._

_"Please... just get up and go to school."_

_"Sis-" His heart twitched in pain as that sad look came over her eyes._

_"Just go..." She didn't look at him, not even has he got back up on his feet and reluctantly went out the door after grabbing his backpack from the coat hanger. A tear escaped her eye as she heard the front door close. "Maybe you'll find something better..."_

_.xxxxx._

_After her little out burst with her brother, __Shōkan had become pissed. She was short-fused with everybody that crossed her, friend or foe, it was a horrible experience for the foe. She took out her frustrations on them in a heartbeat, even over the littlest things. She didn't even know if she was going too far, it numb out the pain and that felt good, making her zone out.  
_

_But that's when she had been caught stomping out a guy that had crossed her the wrong way in broad daylight in front of the last person she had ever wanted to see her like this._

_"Auntie, what are you doing?!"_

_"!" Her foot stopped in midair, and her eyes widened in panic. The terrified cry of her niece made her heart stop. Her breath was shaking as she slowly turned toward her niece.  
_

_The poor things was crying, terrified out of her wits' end. How could this have happened? __Shōkan was very careful about not bring her work close to home, she would never allow her family to see this side of her. But in her anger she had gotten sloppy. Of course her niece was bound to see it. She beating a guy to a pulp in broad daylight, in the middle of street, during the time Kitai got out of pre-school.  
_

_What was happening to her? How could she have fallen so low? Her brother doesn't talk to her anymore, her sister avoids her, and her niece was most likely now terrified of her. She didn't care that she scared others off the street, she was just terrified that her niece had seen this._

_"Shh, shh-shh, baby. It's okay." __Shōkan tried to sooth to her niece as she started to shake, little did __Shōkan know that they both were shaking with fear. "It's okay, you're okay."  
_

_"A-auntie, what's going on? Why are you beating that man up?" She was whimpering out her questions as she kept crying._

_"N-no, no, no, baby. It's not like that. It's just part of the job. Auntie's just angry with him, that's all." It was a poor excuse that even a child could see through._

_"What could have that man done to make you hurt him so bad? You told me not to be angry at stupid things people do to me, you told me!" The child looked so pitiful, so lost as the aunt that she loved so much was crumbling before her eyes. "If he says sorry, you won't be mad anymore. Mister, please say 'sorry'!"_

_It was a sad sight, seeing a child pleading with a man that was already knocked unconscious. The only things saving him from choking on his blood was the kick that turned him on his side. Dear God... what has she become? The child began to cry into her hands as the man refuse to respond to her plea._

_"Oh, Kitai..." __Shōkan sadly called out to her, slowly stepping over to place a comforting hand on the trembling child's head. But her heart nearly shattered when when the child flinched away from her hand and did something that would haunt her for the rest of her life.  
_

_"Hyyyyahhh!" She screamed... her little niece screamed in fear of her._

_"Kitai?" __Shōkan had found that her own voice had shriveled into nothing but a weak whimper, her vision blurred as her eyes watered. One of the few people who should never be afraid of her was cowering away from her hand in fear. Her still. bloodied. hand...  
_

_"Don't hit me, Auntie. I'm sorry." She pitifully beg to her aunt, keeping her eyes closed in fear._

_"No, baby, no. Don't do that." __Shōkan had almost wanted to puke. Is this what she wanted? Is this the path she had chosen for herself? She wanted to protect her family, she wanted to protect the town and the people she loved when the laws driven up couldn't. But didn't she want them to fear her in the process. Gathering up the whimpering child in her arms, she pulled Kitai in close as she rocked the child back and forth. "Don't be scared of me, it hurts Auntie when you do that. Look, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, okay? Auntie has been a bully lately, I think I'm smart enough now to see it."  
_

_"..." Kitai just buried her face into her aunt's shirt as her tiny fist clenched into the black coat on her aunt. "Can we go home... please...?"_

_"Yes... let's go home." She sighed tiredly as the relief washed over her as Kitai didn't reject her touch. Careful not to joust the precious package as she walked down the street. Her sister would soon pass that area for patrol soon, she could get the man on the ground the medical attention he needed. And he in turn would most likely never come to this part of town again. But that no longer matter, something inside __Shōkan had finally clicked. "I think... I'm ready to go down another path..."  
_

_.xxxxx._

_Not even two days had passed since that day with her niece before __Shōkan had found herself back in the Famine base. Yuu would've been disappointed in her, but a subtle feeling he felt coming off of the Resonance made him feel that there was more to this. She was walking down the building's stairway with a guy with long brunette hair following behind her, matching her blue hair in length. From what the Resonance told Yuu, this was __Shōkan's right hand man.  
_

_She had trusted him with many of her dealings and to always have her back when things ever went south. The guy was loyal to the end, to his leader, his members, and his gang. His onyx eyes were so mischievous and yet so friendly. But as she was leading this young man down the stairs, it didn't feel like normal business, it felt like an end..._

_"Tell me, Vince, how long have I been in Famine?" __Shōkan suddenly asked him out of the blue.  
_

_"Uh, nearly four years, I believe."_

_"I see... and how long have I been marked Famine?"_

_"Three years, Famine." He answer without hesitation._

_"Heh, fascinating. And through most of those years you have been by my side."_

_"Eh, more like keeping you out of trouble for the most part. I am the older one here."_

_"That's right, you've got three years on me. I'm surprised you weren't frustrated at taking orders from a kid."_

_"Heh, you weren't like most brats your age. You always knew how to have fun."_

_"Well... I tended to have too much fun. The money, the trafficking, the fights, the thrill. I never really understood when I was going in too deep. I'm glad you were there to pull me out when I did."_

_"Oh, so you noticed. I'm flattered."_

_"You know when enough was enough. That's why I trusted you so much. You weren't greedy."_

_"You speak as if it's past tense." Vince chuckled out, slightly nervous as he was picking up something different about his boss's usual flow._

_"It will be."_

_"!" He nearly panicked at her words, that's when he noticed that she had lead him to the Annunciation Fight Pit. The other bosses already gathered around the cage along with his fellow member from Famine and the other Riders. They were all roaring and hooting for action, Vince didn't know what his boss was about to make him walk in to. _

_"I grow tired of this life, Vince. But I don't want to leave my Famine in incapable hands. This is my second family, and I want to know they are being taken care of." She said before pushing him into the cage and following behind him. "I want to make sure that the purpose of this gang still stands strong. And remains unaltered by corruption and the greed for power."_

_"What are you-" She tossed him his choice of weapon that she had grown to know about him along with his quirks. Not giving him a moment to doubt the situation or himself, she whipped her chain intimidatingly on the ground to show that she was serious. _

_"I have chosen you to take over my mark. I can only trust you with my Famine."_

_"But, Famine, you're-"_

_"I will not be Famine for long, soon you will carry the title as my successor." She crouched down, swinging the ends of the chain around her side as she got ready to fight. "Defeat me, or just don't die. Last 15 minutes in the ring with me, and the name is all yours. I can't just hand it over to anyone, so... I won't hold back."_

_.xxxxx._

_The town that she had known and loved was a wreck. Building ravaged, homes destroyed, all from that one night that had spread a destruction earthquake across the world. The Aragami had went on a blood craze, raising hell over the walls at an unbelievable possibility of 'all at once' timing. They had devoured countless in the town, __Shōkan and the Militia unable to fully stop their gluttonous rampage. Rockets could be seen launching from afar, supposedly from the Far East Branch. Many people had died that night in a short time span, all for it all to come to a sudden stop as the earth lulled to a still again and sparks of light fell from the sky. That was the day the Moon had turned into a lush green.  
_

_No one knew why this had happened. Rumors from the connections __Shōkan had in the Branch told about a failed Project of Fenrir that riled up the Aragami. The knowledge disgusted __Shōkan. What could've Fenrir been tampering with so badly that it would cause such a travesty? Why now?  
_

_Shōkan was just starting to get her life back together. She had given Vince full control over Famine, only making appearance when he needed advice or if he had a small favor of her. She had even gone back to school to try and make up for the things she had lost. The teachers had not given up on her just yet, and were happy to give her make-up work to take home to possibly catch up. It was a lot of work, hard work for someone out of the game as long as her, but she stuck it through. Fukushu had even finally made her appearance after a long time to help tutor __Shōkan with her makeup work when Kitai told her about it. Seiji and Kitai would even help, on a more moral support level as they would sit down with her and do their homework as well.  
_

_But after long, extraneous, hard work she had done it. She had now official caught up with her grade and was now eligible for graduation. She would never actually get the chance to participate in the ceremony with the others in her grade, but she didn't care. She was just happy she could hold that diploma in her hand just like her sister and then maybe... she could live the honest life that her family wanted her to have. _

_But now everything was going down hill. It would take years for the town to repair the damage that it had been dealt, physically and mentally. And the same went for the neighboring towns around the wastelands. And through all the healing and the pain, one thing would constantly ring in __Shōkan's head...  
_

_'Why?'_

_She wanted to know why this had happened. She wanted to know what gain could Fenrir have possibly tried to gain from all this. It had almost become an obsession to her. To the point she just couldn't take it anymore._

_"You're leaving?" It was more like stating a fact than a question with Fukushu as she watched from her seat with the others as __Shōkan got packed.  
_

_"Yeah. Mole had finally got my papers in, so he's smuggling me in today." __Shōkan explained as she double checked to see if she had everything she needed. "I don't when I'm going to be back, so I'll try and call as much as I can."  
_

_"What are you going to do once you get there?" Seiji questioned, trying to talk __Shōkan out of this goose chase. "What are you going to do about food or sleep?"  
_

_"Don't worry, I'm a resourceful person. I'm always good about finding jobs."_

_"__Shōkan..." Fukushu groaned out warningly.  
_

_"Relax, sis. I'm gonna do honest work this time around. I hear that these God Eaters of Fenrir get paid well just to take down some Aragami. Maybe I have a chance of getting the job."_

_"You can't be serious? Are you really going to let them inject you with Oracle Cells?" Seiji barked at her as if she was mad. "Let alone let them strap you down with those armlets I've heard about. They'll chain you for life."_

_"Heh, I rather have a fondness for chains, actually." __Shōkan teased at her brother in good humor before getting serious again. "Besides... we're already mutated enough. Maybe it'll give me an advantage over the others. And... possibly an idea about why that bastard wants us so bad."  
_

_"You're still going on about that?" Fukushu's voice had dropped to a darker tone._

_"I still haven't given up on that monster."_

_"Dammit, __Shōkan, you can't kill him. He's worse than a cockroach in a bomb. Just wait until time does the dirty deed for us and then he'll be nothing but a memory."  
_

_"Yeah, but when will that be? I swear the evil in his heart has added on years to his life. By the time we wait for him to naturally die, Kitai will have already been touched by our family's strife with him."_

_"!"_

_"I don't want that, I will stop him before that happens. Know this, Fukushu, that bastard's life will be mine." __Shōkan proclaimed with a determination that stung with venom. "I will destroy him...! I bet my life on it..."  
_

_.xxxxx._

"Gah!" Yuu was shot out from the Resonance. Yanked out of his grip on Shōkan by Karen as she pulled him away. He was tired and out of breath from the Resonance, not even noticing the cold blade that was kissing his throat. "..."

"Easy, Karen, easy. Let's all calm down before we do anything rash." Dr. Sakaki eased to the girl that was holding a tontou against Yuu's throat. When they tried to get closer she would press the blade harder onto Yuu, forcing them to back up. Yuu didn't even seem as if his head was there for him to be too concerned about it.

"I _am_ calm. It's the only thing that kept me from separating Yuu's head from his body." Karen said with a slight hiss in her voice. "All I want to know is: what do you thing you're doing?"

"I know this may look bad." Kota nervously admitted. "But, it's not what you think."

"From what I see, you have Shōkan-san tied down against her will as you guys gang up on her." Karen bluntly pointed out to them.

"Tst, don't make us out to be the bad guys." Soma grunted out, trying to save his conscience from the guilt he was feeling behind all this. "The Rookie was hiding who she really was, it couldn't be help."

"Aren't we all hiding things about ourselves? Some things that we don't want others to see because it's ours. From what I've heard, Shōkan-san had given you more than enough."

"Well it wasn't. Shōkan had been living among us under false pretense, she's not what she seems." Alisa shot back. "For all we know, everything she has told us was a lie."

"It wasn't a lie..."

"!" They were all startled by the sudden voice of Yuu, he seemed so tired and beaten down.

"Everything she told us was actually the truth. So in a way, she only held one thing back from us."

"So you've hurt her for nothing?" Karen huffed accusingly, clinching tighter on her grip on the blade's handle.

"!" Her words had stung at something inside him. "I didn't hurt her, the Resonance is a minor intrusion of the mind."

"Then why is she so quiet?" Karen pointed out. Disturbing the others at the reality that the talkative Rookie had gone dead silent.

"..." Her head had hung low and her body was limply being held up by the ropes alone. Her blue bangs hid her face from them.

"Maebure-san." Karen called out to her, concern by the limpness the strong spirit was displaying.

"..."

"Shōkan-san?!"

"... So..." Shōkan finally spoke, slowly lifting her head back up to look at Yuu. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

"!" The others panicked as they saw a trail of blood tripping down from her head specifically from her nose. The Resonance shouldn't have harmed her that much, physical damage shouldn't be even a possibility.

"Impossible...! You were resisting me this whole time? Why would you do that?!" Yuu questioned to her, concerned that she would go through such reckless means just to resist him.

"Because... they were mine..." Shōkan tiredly admitted. "Mine to share with others... not to be taken..."

"But, I don't understand. What exactly happened to Rie?"

"I told you... it's more than my life you're tampering with... I'll never let Fenrir see what he has become..."

"If you won't talk, I'll just go in again." Yuu slightly threaten, reaching his hand out toward Shōkan regardless of the blade Karen pressed down tighter on his throat.

"Then do it, you beast... Violate my mind one more time... I'll still keep fighting you, to protect my family..."

"..." Her voice was so tired, but her eyes spoke of determination. Shōkan would keep resisting his Resonance even if it killed her. Looking into her eyes, he truly felt like he was the bad guy. "(Sigh) Damn it."

"?" She lifted an eyebrow as Yuu suddenly backed down.

"I won't do it. It's not worth the hassle, I've seen enough anyway." Yuu sincerely yielded, making Karen release her threatening position from around Yuu's neck. "However, I am sorry... if I've hurt you."

"Heh... I'm surprise you're not apologizing for not lasting long enough." Shōkan chuckled, the life starting to return to her.

"?!" The others nearly flopped over by her weird wording.

"I mean, with your awkward wording through this whole thing, you sound like premature High Schooler with terrible pillow talk." Shōkan started to laugh louder as her teammates started to blush. "I'm practically waiting for you to say, 'I'm sorry I finished early'."

"Really now! Such vulgar humor!" Alisa huffed in appall at Shōkan, while her cheeks burn red as a tomato.

"(Chuckle) You're in for a horrible surprise in the future, Alisa! He's not a long laster (Laugh)!"

"Shōkan!" Alisa whined out with embarrassment, making Shōkan laugh louder.

"Tst, you seem to be feeling better if you have enough energy to waste on ridiculous jokes." Soma grunted with slight relief.

"Yup... I guess so. So that leaves me with one question for you, boss." Shōkan teased before she had turned serious again toward Yuu. "What are you running from?"

"?!"

"I tried not to go into your mind, but I began to feel what you were feeling in my heart." She admitted before looking into his eyes, it felt like she was making a non-contact Resonance with him. "You've got that look in your eyes that I know all too well. That fear, that urge that makes you run away in the hope that your problems won't catch up to you. But you can't do that, your problems won't catch up with you. But you can't do that, your problems will consume you if you do. Before you know it you'll have spent your whole life trying to run away from them."

"..."

"Take it from me, it's better to charge through them like a bull than wasting all your energy running. Believe me, you'll feel better if you do. At least you know you tried."

"..." Yuu had stayed quiet for a moment. But then he just went to walk out the door.

"Leader?" Sakuya asked in worry at his sudden silence.

"Can you guys untied Shōkan for me? I need to go for a little walk for a while."

"Yuu?" Alisa called out to him, but he continued to open the door to walk out.

"So you decided to not run away anymore." Shōkan smirked but was unable to turn to look back at him from her spot tied to the chair. "Good for you."

Yuu said nothing in response to her as he shut the door behind. Wandering with his thoughts, he didn't even realize that he had made his way to the Entrance. That's when he bumped into Ren, who was just standing in the middle of the upper level by the Mission Elevator.

"Hi, Yuu." Ren greeted him.

"Oh... hi, Ren."

"You seem troubled?"

"Yeah... I just suddenly realized that I can't run away anymore."

"I'm sure you've noticed through Resonance by now. That black Aragami is Lindow, no doubt about it. Once the Aragami Transformation progresses to where it stabilizes, you can never go back to being human." Ren pointed out, already knowing what Yuu was talking about. "Anyway, on to the real subject."

"Which is?"

"The best way to deal effective damage at an Aragami-turned Gods Eater is to use the God Arc that they had once used." Yuu closed his eyes with a sigh, already knowing where Ren was going with this. "The only person who knows this truth right now and is able to use Lindow's God Arc safely... is you. In order words, only you can defeat the monster that was once Lindow. So, I will ask you again, one last time. Can you kill that Aragami?"

"I'll save him, no matter what."

"That's an optimistic ideal you have. Though I must say, maybe it's that strong will that lets you succeed in carrying out your beliefs."

"It's what makes me who I am, I would be a poor excuse of a man if I didn't follow through with them."

"As I said before, you'll need his Arc in order to defeat him. Carefully sneak it out, and make sure no one sees you. I'm sure everyone will try to stop you if you walk out with Lindow's Arc without permission."

"Yeah... I'm ready..."

"Then, let's go." And so they walked off into the Mission Elevator, to face the unknown that awaited them. There would be no more running, it was either save Lindow or don't. Shōkan was right about one thing... at least he would be able to live with himself, knowing that he tried.

*** Author's Notes ***

Seiji- means 'justice'


	15. Chapter 15

No Longer Running

"Please don't look at us like that." Alisa politely demanded to Karen with crossed arms in a huff, as Karen's cold eyes relentless persecuted them in silence. She said nothing, but her blue eyes sank their blizzard of a glare into the others core that began to make them feel a twinge of guilt. "We did what we had to."

"You 'had' to do nothing." Karen countered, shooting Alisa down.

"You don't understand, Karen. She was considered a threat to the team." Kota tried to explain their case. "We had to make sure that she wasn't hiding anything that could hurt anyone."

"From what Yuu said, she's been telling us the truth the whole time. Just because she wasn't giving you the 'full' detail, doesn't mean that she was hiding things from you."

"!" Kota couldn't help but flinch as she called out his self-denial.

"Please, Karen, you have to trust us." Sakuya gently pleaded to the stone rookie. Her expression may have been unmoving, but Sakuya could tell she was vexed. "Our intentions were good."

"Trust? You all couldn't even trust me to keep me in the loop. Why should I trust you?" Karen retort with a sneer at the end. She had felt so betrayed, not just for being left out of the group but for what they had done to Shōkan. "I'd be even more surprised if Shōkan was able to trust you again. Look at what you've done to her. In just one night you've all broken all seven tenets of the Bushido. I'm so disgusted I could spit on the ground."

"?" They all quirked an eyebrow, not understanding her insult. This only riled her up more as she was forced to explain.

"Urgh... First of the seven tenets of Bushido is 'gi', or rectitude. In other words, it is righteousness as a consequence of being honorable and honest. There is nothing righteous about what I've seen here. You have broken 'yuu', courage, by simply ganging up on Shōkan instead of confronting her about your growing worries. If she had lied to you then, the fault would be on her, at least there would be some dignity in that method. Not in this hog-tie interrogation like you're some kidnappers."

"..." Karen didn't stop there, she kept digging in to them.

"You have broken 'jin' and 'rei' at the same time. Going through with your misdeed even after she beg you not to do it, thus also disrespecting her wises as your fellow comrade. Shōkan has fought beside you all without once leaving any doubt of betraying any of you on the battlefield, why would you betray in the one place we should all consider safe?"

"Tst, we don't need to be berated by a rookie." Soma growled at her, having enough of her pointing out their crime.

"But I'm still going to berate you anyway." Karen growled back at him. "The last three Bushido you broke are the greatest offense of all: 'makoto', 'meiyo', and 'chuugi'. You should have honestly confronted Shōkan about your growing worries about her, instead of letting it built up inside you to where you would talk against her behind her back. Shōkan may be shady at times, and sometimes she's a little rough around the edges, but at least she had honor. She always knew what should come first in life. She was loyal, she never showed signs of betrayal towards any of us. You've all let your anxieties get the best of you to where you would see things in her that you _thought_ you saw. And acting on that has made you disloyal, and thus making you break six Bushido tenets, automatically making you lack honor."

"Hmph, aren't you a hypocrite. You pointed your blade at Yuu." Soma pointed out.

"My honor is in protecting my teammate that still followed in loyalty. Yuu was not following the way of chuugi, so I saw him as not my leader nor my comrade, but as a threat."

"Che," Soma clicked his teeth and turned his head away from Karen. He couldn't think of a comeback, she kinda had him there.

"Alright, settle down everyone." Dr. Sakaki insisted before addressing Karen. "Now, you do realize that stunt you pulled could get you court marshaled if I report it to Tsubaki, right?"

"You're ranked higher, you could court marshal me even without having to go to her." Karen pointed out, her grip on her tontou's sheath tightened as determination entered her. "But I care not. If I cannot trust my own team to be loyal to me or to themselves, I would rather be discharged than stay a moment longer in this dishonorable place."

"..."

"..." Karen remained silent along with them, waiting to see if her message had sunk in.

"Boy... you really did a number on our conscious, huh?" Kota nervously admitted rubbing the back of his head. "Sure wish Yuu was here to hear the end of it. Kinda feels like we've been bailed on to clean up the mess ourselves."

"Yuu has been gone for a long time." Sakuya pointed out, getting a little worried that maybe Yuu was starting to feel guilty for what they did to Shōkan. Especially the part he played in it all.

"Where do you think he could be?" Alisa ponder to no one in particular. "What could he possibly be doing?"

"More than likely, he's no longer running away."

"?" They all turned to Shōkan who was still tied up in the chair. An awkward silence had come around them while Karen stared at them with accusing eyes. They had all forgotten about untying her.

"Shōkan, what do you know?" Soma asked, his tone slightly easing up on her from earlier.

"Nothing really, just an idea." Shōkan honestly admitted with a shrug. "You might want to find out for yourselves. Yuu might be still around, if you hurry."

"Might be?"

"I don't know, man, all I know is is that he's no longer running away."

"Ugh, right." Soma groaned in exhaustion of her answer, but he could tell from the look in her eyes that she was telling him the truth, sliding his hand down half his face before before addressing the others. "You guys go look for our leader, I'll catch up after I untie Shōkan."

"No need." Shōkan said, getting up out of her seat as the ropes loosely slid down and off her body. Walking over the ropes now on the floor, she messaged her wrists to crank out the soreness in them. She looked to Soma from the corner of her eyes and gave him a smirk. "But thanks for the offer, anyway."

"?!" The all had to stop themselves from jumping back in surprise as she had some how pulled a Great Houdini.

"W-what the?! How did you get out?!" Kota exclaimed in surprise.

"I've been out this whole time. Here's a tip: Don't give the person room to move their wrist if you're going to tie them. I just stayed in that chair in the hopes that you would come to trust me a little more if I showed no threat. Turns out I was wrong." Shōkan sarcastically groaned out the last part with rolling eyes. Her hands coming to a rest a her sides as the soreness had finally left her wrists.

"Shōkan we-"

"Huh, water under the bridge." Shōkan waved Sakuya off before she could even get out her shy question. "Apology accepted."

"!" All of their eyes widened like saucers, they couldn't believe how easily Shōkan was going to forgive them for this and let it go, even Karen.

"But why?" Karen had to ask, she didn't expect Shōkan to be so forgiving, especially with her character.

"Honestly, Karen, I would've done the same thing if someone in my gang gave me a bad feeling. I had a lot of lives to look after, I couldn't afford to let one life possibly jeopardize the others. The others were just acting on the same accord, and I can respect that..." Shōkan explained before looking into Karen' eyes with a serious expression. "Sometimes you gotta do what you have to do, to make sure that the ones that are precious to you are safe."

"!"

"Yup... I knew you'd understand." Shōkan gave Karen a genuine smile in reply to Karen's silent answer. "You know these are good people, inside and out. They've shown us kindness from the first time that we've met them, even if one of them is a Tsundere."

"Hey!" Soma growled at Shōkan's accusation in annoyance as she pointed him out. But she ignored it and continued on.

"The bottom line is, I could never repay their kindness with anything else but the same thing. Even if... they dropped they dropped the ball this one time..."

"..."

"Shōkan."

"Enough of this sap, Alisa. I've had enough emotions for one day. That Resonance had puckered me out."

"Glad to see your back to normal, Ms. Maebure." Dr. Sakaki replied to her with his trademark fox-grin. But that grin meant more than what it was leading on. He was her accomplice now, along with the others; he would keep her secrets about being a Rouge while she in return would most likely be doing some outside favors for him in the future. Either way, the relationship of First Unit Member and Acting Director between them had slightly changed a little.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's just go look for Yuu already."

*** Aegis Island ***

Yuu had cautious walked out onto the floor, following Ren's tracking direction of Lindow's Aragami. The corrosive thing-of-a-Aragami was waiting for him on the platform on the other side. Growling at Yuu as him and Ren came close.

"Hi, Lindow..." Yuu greeted the Aragami, slightly crestfallen. The Aragami growled deeper in response, corrosive flames building and escaping from its mouth. "I'm here to bring you home."

It roared at him in defiance. Leaping off of its platform to charge at Yuu without a second thought. This corrosive Hannibal was slowly consuming his comrade. If Yuu had any hopes of finding Lindow in there, he would have to fight his way through...

*** Back at the Den ***

The search for Yuu had turned up fruitless for the First Unit. They had hit all of Yuu's favorite spots and had found no sign of him being there for a while. Finally giving in to defeat, they had decided to have Hibari check for his Bio Signal to locate him. Meeting up together in the Entrance as they all got the idea at the same time. But by the time they asked Hibari about Yuu's location the alarm went off on Hibari's desk. Acting fast, she investigated what was causing the commotions with the radars.

"We've detected a black Hannibal on Aegis." Hibari explained to them as she looked through the data, but gasped as she found something in the data she didn't expect. "Huh?... The 1st Unit Leader is fighting it... Alone?"

"!" They all seemed surprised by this news, except Shōkan. She had an idea their leader would pull a stunt like this, what got her -like the rest of them- was how quickly he got to Aegis.

"Our Leader... fighting alone?!" Alisa gasped in uneasiness.

"What an idiot." Soma grunted out in vexation of his leader's reckless actions and his constant need to play the solo hero. Accepting that there was no time to lose, he took charge of the others. "Hey! We're all heading out!"

They all nodded in confirmation.

"None of you move! Stay on standby!" Tsubaki ordered to them, catching them off guard by her insensitive command as she came down from the upper level stairs.

"What's the meaning of this?" Alisa nearly growled at Tsubaki, her leader was in danger and Tsubaki had the nerve to order her to stay back and watch.

"The black Hannibal must have infected Lindow." Tsubaki explained to them, finally letting them in on the secret her, Yuu, and Dr. Sakaki was keeping away from the others for so long. "So your Leader went to kill it on his own."

The news was devastating, it was like having Lindow ripped out of their grasps again, just when they thought they almost had him back. None was more crushed than Sakuya herself.

"But why...?" Her voice was so heartbroken.

"Sakuya. Are you prepared to point your gun at Lindow?" Tsubaki threw the truth right at her, sparing no expense for Sakuya's feelings. This was the reality, and Sakuya would have to face it.

"Well..." Sakuya couldn't even look at Tsubaki, nor answer her.

"The same goes for the rest of you... Can you bring yourself to do it?" The original members of the First Unit all turned their heads away. "... If you can't then prepare yourselves right now!"

Karen and Shōkan were prepared to do what needed to be done, if the moment arises. They knew this would be easier for them since they didn't have a chance to get to know this Lindow. So out of respect to the others they stayed quiet. It would seem that Yuu was going to take on the burden of this deed by himself so his team wouldn't have to suffer through the guilt. Karen couldn't help but regain some of the respect she had for Yuu, along with Shōkan.

"I'm going to issue a new Special Mission! Your target is the Black Hannibal on Aegis! Destroy it as soon as possible!" Tsubaki explained as she gave out their new order. "The Hannibal regenerates, so it'll have the upper hand. Remember, you are to retreat as soon as you've extracted the core. Understood?"

They all nodded their head in confirmation.

"Sakuya, I'm ordering you to stay behind." Tsubaki commanded before softening her tone in comfort at the young woman's turmoil. "No need for you to have to grieve over and over..."

"No." Sakuya said with strong determination even if tears were trying to escape from her eyes. "That's an order I can't obey. It's my duty to watch Lindow, the one I love, take his last breath."

"Sakuya..." Alisa called out to her in sympathy.

"... Very well." Tsubaki yielded, respecting Sakuya's choice even if it made her suffer. If she could, Tsubaki would do the same thing, it was her little brother after all.

"Yeah, me too." Kota seconded. "I've... made up my mind too. Although... it's not like I've accepted it in my mind yet..."

"Our job is to support our Leader." Soma stated. "That moron that carries everyone's load."

"Yes, you're right. But..." Alisa commented with growing determination that was starting to encourage the others. "Perhaps I'm being an optimistic. But I think it's going to be find. Our Leader wouldn't do this for no reason."

"Heh, you might be right." Tsubaki couldn't help but smirk, the determination of youth was always inspiration to her. "Fine. You should head out right now. And give those two brawlers this message from me. I'll only exempt them from discipline if they both return safely. Alright?"

Now those were the kind of orders the others could obey as they nodded to Tsubaki in confirmation.

"Now, break up into two groups." Tsubaki instructed. "Sakuya, Alisa, Kota, you guys will act as the Defense Team. Back up the second team. Soma, Karen, Shōkan, you guys will be the Offense Team. Take the front and get Yuu and Lindow out of there."

"Yes ma'am!" "Right!" "Hai, Okusama!" "Yeah sure."

"O great, I'm stuck with the rookies." Soma groaned out in annoyance, and slight nervousness for having to be put in the same team as Shōkan.

"Hey, look on the bright side." Shōkan shrugged, wrapping a nonchalant arm around his shoulder. "It takes a lot for me to hold a grudge. And you guys have yet to reach that level. So let's bring those boys back home before they rough themselves up too much."

"Tst," Soma grunted, roughly shrugging Shōkan's arm off of his shoulder. "We're wasting time."

"Right, let's go." Sakuya insisted as they all made a run for the Mission Elevator. The elevator could only fit so much, so the Defense Team went first and the Second Team would wait for the next ride down.

Sakuya didn't waste any time grabbing her God Arc and heading out with her team. Because by the time the Second Team got down to the Hanger they were already gone.

Not wanting to fall too far behind, Soma and the others quickly grabbed their God Arcs and started to head out when Shun came in with his team of Karel and Gina after a mission.

"Hey, where's the fire?" Shun sarcastically asked, noticing the rush the three of them were in.

"We've got an urgent mission at Aegis." Karen vaguely explained, just enough to get her cousin off of her back. "That black Hannibal from before showed up again."

"What?! That Aragami was mad crazy, you can't face that!" Shun barked, putting his foot down for some strange reason as he blocked their path to the exit.

"It's part of the hazard of the job. Orders are orders, now get out of our way." Karen huffed back, pushing passed her older cousin who in turned grabbed her arm to halt Karen in her tracks.

"Like hell I'm gonna let you face that thing!"

"What does it matter to you?"

"That 'thing' almost killed us, I'm not going to let you face it again!"

"Since when have you cared?!" Karen barked, yanking her arm out of his grip as she turned to stare him down.

"..." An awkward silence came over the others as they nervously watched the quarrel between the two cousins. Having enough of the tension in the air, Shōkan started pushing Soma passed Shun and Karen to head out the exit.

"This seems like a personal matter between family, so we'll give you two some time alone. Catch up to us when you sort things out, Karen. We'll be waiting outside!" Shōkan quickly said to Karen, having to call out to her as they got further away from Karen.

"What the hell are you doing? Stop pushing." Soma growled at her, giving her a stern look as he was forced to turn his head to look at Shōkan who was still pushing him out the exit.

"Let's leave them alone for a while." Shōkan insisted with a whisper. "Turns out Yuu isn't the only one who decided to no longer run away."

"Tst, whatever. But she better hurry, or we're heading out without her."

"Pfft, fine." Shōkan complied, rolling her eyes in the process.

"The rookie has a point there." Gina pointed out, back in the Hanger, starting to push Karel along toward the elevator to leave the Shun and Karen alone. "Try not to get carried away, you two."

"What are you-" Karel quirked an eyebrow at Gina's antics before she interrupted his question with a whisper.

"This is a matter between Ogawas. Let's let them settle their differences."

"..." So now the two of them were alone, staring each other down with lightning bolts in their eyes.

"You're not going on this mission, and that's final." Shun growled, crossing his arms as he- for the first time- really took charge as the elder sibling.

"I don't take orders from you." Karen remained defiant, slanting her eyes at him as she dared him to make her do otherwise.

"What's you're deal, brat?! What do you have against me that makes you hate me so much?!"

"Huh, since when have you ever cared whether I hate you or not?!" She uncharacteristically huffed, not believing that she was hearing the words that were coming out of Shun.

"I've always cared! I'm your big cousin for God's sake!"

"Liar! You've never cared! As a child you were such an ass to me, other times you just didn't want anything to do with me. You've cut off all ties with me after the funeral, I haven't heard a word from you in years!"

"Shut up, you don't know what I was doing! I had... 'things' I was going through!"

"Heh. Then _please_, do tell me what's had you busy all this time." Karen sarcastically asked in fake politeness. Karen was starting to wonder what was wrong with her, she was starting to sound a little like Shun. She never was this sarcastic normally, maybe Shōkan was starting to rub off on her a little. The thought alone sent a shiver down her spine. "I'm _sure _whatever it is must have been _so _important to check in on your cousin to see if she was still alive or not. Or even let her know that you were still around!"

"Just shut up, OKAY?!"

"Hmph, I don't care what Gina-neesan says you've done, you'll still the same jerk I remembered since I was small." Karen grunted, looking down to the floor, hoping that Shun didn't hear the disappointment that escaped from her voice.

"Hey! Listen... I've- I've never been good with words. Ever since I was a kid... I always end up saying things I don't mean. It's just...!" Shun struggled to get his words out, making Karen raise her head back up to look at him. She couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow at him as she saw the frustration in face from his struggle, he looked like the words were stuck in his throat and building up traffic trying to get out of him. As he was starting to turn red, Karen almost thought he was going to burst. he growled and grumbled, roughly brushing a hand through his hair and letting it stay there in his frustration. "I don't know...! I just couldn't stand that you were so good. It's not... what I mean is...! Ugh! Damn it! Why is this so hard?!"

"!" Suddenly something clicked in Karen, her eyes widen at a sudden realization. In the jumble of Shun's scrambled words, Karen had reached an enlightenment that shined a truth on both their childhood clashes. "Now I understand... you've just wanted to be better than me."

"No!" Shun barked in deny before he shied down into a grumble. The hand that was resting in his hair slid down and off his face as he sighed out in exasperate admittance. "I just... wanted you to look up to me."

"?!"

"_I'm _the big cousin, I was the one that was suppose to look after you... I was suppose to be the cool one you looked up to. But... You just... you were always so damn good at everything! It was like you didn't even need me for anything! Ugh... it was so infuriating! No matter how hard I tried, it just pushed you away further! So I stopped trying! And just... let things... run their own course. Give you the damn space you've always wanted..."

"..."

"(Sigh) Look, I'm not gonna say 'sorry' or anything like that! I just... what I'm trying to say is... Ugh! You get what I'm trying to tell you, right?!"

"Yeah... I got it." Karen replied, her voice calming down too as the fight was melting out of her. She couldn't help but give Shun a small, quick smirked as her arms wiggled in their crossed position. "I guess I'm not gonna say 'sorry' too... for being so cold, I guess..."

"Yup... I'm cool with that." Shun nonchalantly shrugged off, giving Karen a small grin in return. "So... we're cool, right?"

"Yes... I guess we are." The words actually relieved Karen as they left her mouth. "I feel lighter..."

"Hm?"

"It must have been all that weight I've lost, after taking the time to stop running to drop it..."

"Heh, good for you, kid. I kinda get what you mean." It felt good, getting rid of all that excess animosity, for the both of them. But now after all their warring, they just felt exhausted.

"Sooo, are you still against me going on this mission?"

"Yup." Shun answered with a small nod. "I take it you're still gonna go on it anyway?"

"Yup." Karen answered, copying off her older cousin, making him smirk a little.

"Heh, just like a Ogawa. Always stubborn to the end." He chuckled a little, shaking his head a little before letting out a sigh. "Well give'em hell."

"Hai, Shun-niisan." She replied with a respectful bow before going out the exit to catch up with her team.

"Heh... I kinda like the sound of that..."

*** Aegis Island ***

"That hurt." Yuu grunted in pain as the Corrosive Hannibal back-kicked him as it jumped away from them.

"It's coming your way!" Ren warned at the last second as the Corrosive Hannibal came leaping at Yuu with it's corrosive flame spear, giving Yuu only one second to pull out his shield in time. The force of the block pushed Yuu slightly back as the Aragami used his shield to kick itself back as well.

"Damn it, Lindow. I'll find you in there, no matter what!" Yuu roared at the Corrosive Hannibal in turned as it roared back at them. Charging after the corrosive Aragami, dashing to the right as it fired one of his corrosive fireballs out of its mouth. Yuu dodged it okay, but it hit Ren.

"No!"

"You okay?"

"I'm fine." Ren assured as he got back on his feet again and started continuing his cover fire.

"Dammit, Lindow, snap out of it!" Yuu called out to the Aragami again, only to roll out of the way as it charged at him on its hind legs. Claws ready for action, only to miss and go tumbling on the ground. Dashing after the tumbled Aragami as it was getting up, Yuu went in for a few slashes. "You're stronger than this, Lindow. Wake up!"

His outburst only earned a punch in the face from the Aragami as it got up to do a 1-2-3 combo, knocking Yuu to the ground. Wiping the escaped saliva off of the side of his lips as he got up on bent knees, Yuu righted himself up again. Ready to continue the round.

The Corrosive Hannibal had moved, making him safe on the side as it shot out a wave of corrosive fireballs that ended up hitting Ren. Changing into Gun-mode, Yuu fired Ren all the Recover Bullets he could.

"Sorry..."

"No need to apology. Let's just take him out, so the core regenerating process can calm him down."

"Right..." Ren agreed, rolling out of the way as the Corrosive Hannibal got up on two legs, charging at him.

It missed and decided to charge after Yuu next. Yuu was able to roll out of the way, while changing back into Blade-mode, but the Corrosive Hannibal had quickly stopped and hit Yuu with its fist in frustration.

"Crap. This isn't pretty." Yuu hissed as he got back up on his feet, taking a Recovery Pill II while the Aragami was distracted with Ren's cover fires.

Charging after Yuu again, Yuu met it head on with his shields. Barely moving an inch as he stood his ground, leaving the Corrosive Hannibal wide open for Yuu's attacks. Annoyed by Yuu's insistent blade, the Corrosive Hannibal back-flipped away from Yuu on one hand. Only to dash at him with a 1-2-3 combo punches a second later. Infuriated that its hits were dodged, it roared at Yuu in rage.

Not wasting a moment of the Aragami's open form, Yuu went in for a slash at its face. Making the Corrosive Hannibal take a step back on two legs, wiping off the escaped blood from its mouth. It growled at Yuu for that as corrosive fire started to build up in its mouth. It roared, the beast was enraged...

Stabbing it's clawed hand into the ground, it summoned a corrosive flame from deep below that was honing on Yuu. Running away from the dark heat as best he could, Yuu had no choice but to roll at the last second as the dark flames came up while he was changing into Gun-mode. The heat from the flames still burned at his backside, even has he got safely away.

"Such a terrible darkness... Lindow, fight it, please." Yuu pleaded to his mentor that was still inside the Aragami as he fired his Oracle Bullets at it. But the Corrosive Hannibal only responded with a wave of corrosive flames that it shot from its mouth, blocking its front with flames. Which caught Yuu off-guard when it came charging out of the flames towards him for a tackle strike. "Ugh, dammit."

"Have a Recovery Bullet!" Ren called out to him as he shot a wave of relief through Yuu's body.

"Thanks..." Yuu thanked before he moved out of the Aragami direct line of vision. But they both would have to move away faster as the Corrosive Hannibal got up on two's again and pulled out corrosive flame blades from its arms.

"Move!" Yuu warned to Ren as the Aragami preformed its deadly dance with blades.

"Ahh!" Ren cried out as he barely dodged its last swing. To make matters worse, the Corrosive Hannibal was going to perform the dance again. "There!"

Ren had turned around, firing a shot at the Aragami's head, stopping it before it could perform for a second time.

"Nice work, Ren!" Yuu praised before he dodged a corrosive fireball. "Enough's enough!"

Yuu had roared at the Corrosive Hannibal, taking a hard slice at its upper arm. Yuu didn't expect for the strike to do much, but the Corrosive Hannibal had rolled on its side, gripping its arm in pain from the strike as it roared out. The sight disturbed Yuu, because it was gripping the same arm that was infected on Lindow the same way Lindow would do it in the Resonance visions.

"Let's finish this up quick, Ren."

"Uh-oh! It's getting up!"

Jumping back as the Aragami got back on its feet again, Yuu began to fire all the Oracle Bullets he had at the Aragami...

"Crap, I'm outta gas." Only to run out of OP as the Corrosive Hannibal was coming in for a charge. Rolling out of the way as he changed into Blade-mode, he began striking at what ever he could. Yuu didn't care if it wasn't doing as much damage as in other places, the Corrosive Hannibal was about to go down soon anyway he just wanted to finish it off.

"There!" Ren shouted off as his shot broke off the Corrosive Hannibal's back scale, releasing a halo of dark flame wings.

"Aw great..." Yuu groaned out as it came dashing at him with its dark flame blades. He was able to dodge its blade, but not its hand as it came smacking at him. "Crap... it's gotten stronger..."

"It's going for the skies!"

"Dammit, that's not good. Shields up, Ren!" Yuu ordered as the Aragami released a waved of relentless flames that continued to push them back until the Corrosive Hannibal returned from the skies. Dashing at the still cooling down Aragami, Yuu slashed at its face, thus breaking off its head armor. It roared out in pain and frustrations. "I'm sorry... if that hurt..."

The Hannibal tried to get out its flame blades again, but Yuu had slashed at its hind legs, making it trip. And both Yuu and Ren delivered the final strike and shot at the same time to finish off the Corrosive Hannibal for good. Well not for long... the core would regenerate soon anyway.

"Okay, it's done..." Yuu sighed out, out of breath.

"Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine. But... what about Lindow?"

"Leader!"

"!" The call of Alisa had interrupted their conversation before Yuu could get an answer. Flinching at the sound of her voice, along with the mumble steps of his incoming team, Yuu didn't have the heart to turn back and look at them as they approached.

They stared at the Corrosive Hannibal lying limply on the floor before staring at Yuu's back in heart break at Yuu doing the dirty deed. He had to do what needed to be done, but... they just wished he didn't have to do it.

"Did you... kill it?" Kota asked him, not really wanting to hear the answer.

"No." Yuu simply answered as he watched the Corrosive Hannibal float up into the air again on its corrosive flame wings.

"!" Kota gasped out along with the others as the Corrosive Hannibal got up again like a marionette zombie. It was curled up into itself as it floated higher off the ground.

Karen was just about to fire at it, when Shōkan grabbed her arm, getting Karen's attention as she shook her head. Reluctant by her teammates interference once again, she decided to comply before Shōkan did something crazy to stop her.

"!" Sakuya gasped in shocked horror as they others' eyes' widened in shock. The Corrosive Hannibal had uncurled from itself to reveal Lindow, fusing with its chest. "Lin... dow..."

"Damn!" Soma grunted out in frustration at their lateness. The Aragami Infection had already spread this far, Lindow won't be able to revert back into a human soon. He already looked so tired as he limply hung inside the Corrosive Hannibal's chest as if he was nailed in there.

"Lindow! Open your eyes!" Alisa cried out, pleading for Lindow to keep fighting. Even though it looked like the fight had left him long since.

"Do it." Ren called out to Yuu, making him turn his head in shock at his words.

"!" Such hard request to ask from a fellow comrade.

"If you miss this chance, you might never be able to kill it."

"..." There was no feeling in his words, he was even referring to Lindow as 'it'. Yuu couldn't believe how far Ren had shut himself off to get the job done, it actually made Yuu sad for him. If not for the panic that returned full force as Ren held out Lindow's God Arc in his hand.

"Now then... take this sword and plunged it into Lindow."

"..." Yuu didn't even have time to contemplate how Ren was able to hold Lindow's God Arc without being rejected by its Oracle Cells. The moment of choice was in his hands now. To kill or not to kill. He was hesitant as his hand stopped midway from taking the God Arc. The cry of Lindow had drawn his attention. "!"

"Just forget... about me..."

"Lindow... it's you isn't it?" Sakuya asked him in hope, if he was able to talk perhaps there was still a chance. But he didn't answer her, his face only grew sadder and more tired as the fight had long since left him.

"Lindow..." Kota sadly called out to him, he could recognize that face. He had seen it so many times, on him and on others, it was the face of a man that has given up.

"You're still wavering?" Ren sadly pointed out as Yuu still refused to take the God Arc from his hand. But Yuu wasn't sure if that question was for just him. "But I thought you already made up your mind."

"Get out of here... hurry." Lindow pleaded with them with the last bit of strength he had left.

"No. I won't leave you again. And I won't be left behind again." Sakuya pitiful cried as she remained unmoving with the others, not bothering to hide the tears that welled in her eyes. None of them had ever saw Sakuya in a state this pitiful before. "I just won't... Lindow..."

"..." He couldn't answer her, he didn't know what to say to ease her pain. He was a dying man, what more could he do.

"Lindow... You're coming back, even if I have to drag you." Alisa insisted before she started to break down along with the others. "How else can I atone?"

"..."

"Decide now, or others will die!" Ren raised his voice, having enough of Yuu's wavering decision. "Do you want Lindow to murder his own comrades?!"

"Listen... I've already made up my mind... I'm going to... clean up my own mess." Lindow sadly confirmed to them, tiredly saying that it was okay to finish him off, this was his fate to fulfill.

"Now, release him from this viscous circle of carnage!" Ren insisted.

"Get away from here!" Lindow roared at them as the Corrosive Hannibal got ready to go into the attack. "That's... that's an order!"

"Hurry! Take this sword and stab Lindow!" Ren yelled at Yuu. Time was up, he no longer had anymore time to decided.

Deciding to take things his way, Yuu took the God Arc from Ren, but with own agenda in plan.

"Ahhhh!" Yuu cried out as the Oracle Cells from Lindow's God Arc nibbled into his arm a little, temporarily Aragami Infecting his entire arm that was holding it.

"!" The others gasped at Yuu's crazy move, wondering where he had hidden Lindow's God Arc on his person.

"Leader!" Alisa cried out in concern.

"That crazy bastard..." Shōkan gasped out in disbelief.

"Don't run away!" Yuu roared at Lindow. "Don't run away from the Living! That's an order!"

"!" Lindow's eyes widened at Yuu's words before he was also surprised at the sight of Yuu charging toward him with his own God Arc and Yuu's.

"Arrrahhhhh!" Yuu roared as he jumped into the air onto the Corrosive Hannibal. Thrusting both God Arcs into its mouth, forcing it to open wide enough that the jaws split apart, revealing the Aragami's core. Lifting up his Aragami Infected arm, he punched the Corrosive Hannibal right in the core. But then... that's when things started to get crazy...

_.xxx. Resonance Den .xxx._

_"Where am I?" Yuu asked as he looked around at his sudden return to the Den, but this one was... different. It felt like being in the Negative of a photo._

_"Welcome to a place that is far beyond the end that I had expected to see..." Ren said by Yuu's side. "You seemed bewildered. Did you want ask me something?"_

_"Yeah, what the heck happened?"_

_"Let's see. I'll try to explain what I know. First, the infection of Oracle Cells from Lindow's God Arc has transformed your arm into an Aragami. If you had struck through Lindow with that God Arc, everything would have ended. But you... I don't know if you panicked or if you meant it... knowing you, you probably meant it. But you dealt a very mundane attack to the Aragami. Well, what's done is done. Anyway, that seems to have caused you and Lindow's spirits to Resonate very strongly with each other."_

_"Well then, what is this place?"_

_"Let's see... It's a little different from the usual Den that you know. It's actually my first time here as well. I believe this is you and Lindow's -... well, strictly speaking, I guess me included... It's our Oracle cell's neuro-... I mean, hmm... Simply put, we're inside Lindow's mind. There."_

_"So... what do we do now?"_

_"Well... if we stay here for too long, you and Lindow will start to assimilate and your minds will change, or simply disappear. In order to prevent that, we need to wake up Lindow's consciousness, which is a lot weaker than yours at this moment. To be more specific, we need to stimulate the consciousness and memories within the Oracle Cells... the spirit, so to say."_

_"That doesn't sound too good, should we go?"_

_"Yeah. Well then, let me know when you're ready."_

_Being a once in a life opportunity to explore the depths of Lindow's mind, Yuu looked around the Den quickly. But all the doors were locked. Disappointed Yuu returned to Ren._

_"Well, are you ready?"_

_"Yes." Yuu groaned in disappointment.  
_

_"You shouldn't be looking so deep into people's minds anyway." Ren chuckled in lecture. "Didn't you learn from last time?"_

_"?!"_

_"Well then, let's begin by tracing back Lindow's spirit. I hope he established his sense of self quickly..."_

_"Yeah, me too."_

_"We'll start at the Subway remains. He defeated a Susano'o there."_

_"Wha? Crap... I hate those guys. Nasty biters."_

_"Then, let's go."_

_.xxx. Infernal Subway .xxx._

_"Ugh! Like I said... Nasty biters." Yuu grunted out before taking out the Susano'o's God Arc claws' armor. It had been a strange feeling for Yuu, usually these Susano'os could pack a punch. But this one... this one was barely doing any damage. "Strange... why is this one so weak?"_

_"Because this one is still in the process of fully undergoing an Aragami Infection." Ren sadly explained before rolling out of the way of the Susano'o's needle. "This is an Assisted Suicide Mission Lindow had to take for another Unit sense he was a match..." _

_"!" The news made Yuu's inside churn as he took on a new outlook of this Aragami. "Ugh, why didn't Lindow ever tell us about this?"_

_"This was a Secret Mission... and was his burden to bare..."_

_"Damn that idiot, taking all this on his own by himself." Yuu grunted in frustration. "Well I've had enough of it!"_

_Charging at the Susano'o with a new found rage, he started slashing at the Aragami relentlessly._

_"How can he ever count on us to have his back if he's always pulling stunts like this?!" Delivering the final blow, Yuu had toppled the Susano'o over, it curled its legs up on its back as it died. "Hmph... now we've both dirtied our hands with this, Lindow..."_

_And this way... Lindow would no longer have to carry the burden alone._

_"Come on, we're moving out."_

_"Right..."_

_.xxx. Back at the Resonance Den .xxx._

_Yuu had found it really weird restocking with the Merchant when he wouldn't say a word to him during the process and just stared at him with blank eyes. But looking around the Den, he was happy to find that one of the doors finally opened... it was Lindow's room. Giving it a peek, he was surprised to find that Sakuya and Lindow were in there. Or at least... it looked like them..._

_"As I said before, your spirit and Lindow's spirit are mixed up in here." Ren spoke, catching Yuu off guard by his presence. He was beginning to wonder where the guy had run off to. "That Sakuya there is probably from Lindow's spirit. The Lindow over there is probably from your own. Come, let's try to make Lindow aware of himself."_

_"Hey newbie! How are you? Getting used to life around here?" Said Lindow, repeating one of his and Yuu's previous conversations. "Hurry up and be strong enough so I can rely on you. I'm looking forward to it, rookie!"_

_Listening to him reminded Yuu of the good old days which brought back an ache to his heart. But if all went well, he could get those days back. No, he will get Lindow back.  
_

_"Are you ready?" Asked Ren. "Were going to fight the Ouroboros that Lindow fought alone saying he was going on a date."_

_"I'm ready."_

_"Then, let's go."_

_.xxx. Wailing Plains .xxx._

_"Dammit, this thing can really take a punch." Yuu grunted out in annoyance as he fired his last Divine Oracle Bullet at the marching Ouroboros. "Why is this thing so strong?"_

_"Because it's in the process of turning into a Fallen Ouroboros." Ren explained as he rolled out of the colossal Aragami's way._

_"Of course. Why am I not surprised?" Yuu groaned out with rolling eyes._

_"Take that!" Ren taunted at the Ouroboros as he fired at its horns barely out of the Aragami's reaching length as it swatted its tendrils at him. Rushing from the side, Yuu began to slice at its leg tendrils._

_"Hey, does this mean that its armor is still weak down here? Or did it move to its spine?"_

_"I don't know, see for yourself." Ren replied while still firing at the Ouroboros's face. Whether fallen or not, you can always count rely on the weak spot in the eyes and horns._

_"Right... I was more of a hands on learner anyway..." Yuu commented in slight amusement. Jumping up to deliver a hard slash along the downside of the Ouroboros's arm tendril, he found the answer he was looking for. "Yup, it's still weak there."_

_"Focus. This'll be a tough one."_

_"You got that right."_

_Getting a lucky hit at its back legs, Yuu had tripped the Ouroboros off its feet._

_"Timber!" Yuu taunted at the colossal as it came tumbling down, before going in for the face. "Let's finish this up quickly."_

_"Coming your way!" Ren gave Yuu a heads up before sending him two Team-bullets._

_"Thanks, man." Yuu replied before slashing at the Ouroboros face while it was still down on the ground. Jumping in the air, he got a good strike at the Ouroboros's face, taking out its eyes. "Whoops."_

_"Take that!" Ren shouted, giving the Ouroboros the piercing blow that took it down._

_"(Huff) Okay, it's all over."_

_"Is anybody hurt?"_

_"Well, the Ouroboros is dead and I'll live." Yuu jokingly pointed out._

_"That's not what I meant." Ren groaned out in a little annoyance as he extracted the Ouroboros's core. Turning his head to look back at Yuu during the process. "We should head back now. Hey, stop that! There's no point in that! We're in Lindow's mind, it's not a real item."_

_"Sorry, it's just an old habit." Yuu nervously chuckled out as he stopped midway from gathering salvaging items. "But then again, the recovery items I bought from the Merchant worked."_

_"That's something else entirely." Ren huffed out in explanation. "You won't be able to take those items with you either once we get out of here. They only serve to relieve your stress as you go through the mind."_

_"Right..." Yuu replied, barely understanding what Ren meant._

_.xxx. Back at the Resonance Den .xxx._

_This time while Yuu was looking around,the Director's office was open. Johannes... it's been a long time since Yuu had seen his face. The man that went the wrong way with good intentions. Like reenacting a skit from a memory, Johannes began to talk._

_"I won't... ask for your absolute... subordination. You and I... both wish for the victory of mankind... That's all we want... isn't that right?" God, no wonder Lindow hated interacting with this man. He had Lindow practically caged. "Good... Then I shall explained... The next Special Mission..."_

_The memory was fading, the Director had stopped talking. Since Ren wasn't there, Yuu believed that he was most likely back in Lindow's room. Maybe he should go check it out._

_Like last time, the room was open to him. Entering Lindow's room, Yuu could see Lindow in the terrible shape he remembered Lindow in from early Resonances. His shirt was ripped off to create the make-shift bandages around his torso. His hair was messy from struggling out there on his own for so long. And his right arm... was just like the dark Hannibal's._

_"Go away... now... Leave me... alone..." Lindow barely gets out._

_"We're getting close." Ren says coming from behind Lindow. "But his words... I think the assimilation is progressing. We need to hurry before your identities mold completely."_

_"Then what are we waiting for, let's go get'em."_

_"This will be the last battle. The Black Hannibal is inside the church in the Old City. Are you ready?"_

_"Yeah. I already restocked."_

_"Let's hurry."_

_.xxx. City of Mercy church .xxx._

_Just like all the other fights as soon as they headed out the Mission Elevator, they walked into nothingness. Just pure white until it blindingly light brightens and they suddenly end up at their destination. When the light final dimmed away, they were inside the City of Mercy's church. The exit was blocked off... just like it was when Yuu and the others were force to leave Lindow behind._

_"We finally... made it this far." Ren and Yuu both notice Lindow sitting up on the wall near the blocked exit. He looked normal, but he was so tired, almost asleep. Ren bent down to his level and touched his cheek. "All this time... Lindow has been battling the Aragami inside him... He can't go on much longer. His consciousness... is startling to fade."_

_Noticing a person's presence, Lindow tiredly opened his eyes. "Oh, wait... who are you?" Then cried out in pain as he grabbed the arm that 'should' be undergoing the Aragami Transformation._

_Ren got back on his feet and pouted. "Pretty cold of you Lindow. You're spoiling our reunion." Then he turned back to Yuu. Walking over to Yuu as he had a look of silent acceptance on his face. "This will likely be the last favor I'll ask of you... Give Lindow power to fight again."_

_Closing his eyes, Ren began to glow a bright gold. Shocked at what he was seeing, Yuu watched as Ren turned into a God Arc right into his hand. Not just any God Arc... Lindow's. That explains a lot, how he knew so much about Yuu and the others, how Yuu was the only one who would talk back to him. Now Yuu could understand why everyone was asking those strange question when he brought Ren along on missions, or when Ren was around. Not to mention the strange connection they have. _

_So God Arcs are living beings...  
_

_"Heh... who would have thought." Yuu thought aloud, giving a warm smirk down at Ren the God Arc.  
_

_"Hey... what was that just now." Lindow said, finally waking up. He noticed it was Yuu and got up. Relief came over him at seeing a familiar face. "Hey... So it's you. Damn... I don't believe you. How could you come all this way?"_

_"Hey, you know me, Lindow. I'll always have your back." Yuu shrugged in slight tease before lifted up Lindow's God Arc out to him. "Now take your God Arc and fight to live."_

_He smiled at this and grabbed his God Arc from Yuu's hands. "I heard what you shouted out to me, Rookie. Oh, hey... you're not a Rookie anymore, my bad..."_

_"Heh, as long as it's you, I'll let it slide."_

_"'Don't run away from living', huh? I was the one who wasn't ready to make up my mind." Then he gave his God Arc one good swing as if getting re-acquainted with his old friend. Placing it on his shoulder, like he always did, afterwards._

_"Seems like we both we're having problems with making up our minds." Yuu smirked at him as he saw the fight return in Lindow's eyes._

_"Alright... now that I decided to survive, shall I make one more ugly stand?" Lindow announced before turning back to Yuu. "Hey, Leader... you got my back right?"_

_"You can count on me, man... let's finish this."_

_And so the two God Eaters walked toward the light coming from the shattered church windows, where a Dark Hannibal greeted them with a roar. Most likely the same Corrosive Hannibal that Yuu and Ren were fighting before. They never faltered as they walked toward the final fight that will decide it all. Whether the Aragami liked it or not, they were both going home alive..._

_"Alright, I'll help you out." Lindow said over to Yuu as the Corrosive Hannibal finally jumped down into the church._

_Not wasting any time, Yuu began slashing at the Aragami's gauntlet. Not stopping until the Corrosive Hannibal got a good punch at his face._

_"Tst, that hurt." Yuu growled as he wiped the saliva off of the side of his lips. Getting back into the game, he continued slashing at the Corrosive Hannibal. He didn't waste time on form and pinpointing the Aragami's weak points. His friend's life was on the line, and he didn't have any time to waste. So he left himself wide open as the Corrosive Hannibal honed in on Lindow to release corrosive fire spud from the ground before punching Yuu at its front. "Crap, this isn't pretty. You okay, Lindow?"  
_

_"Heh, I've had worse." Lindow replied back before Yuu shot him a Recovery Bullet for good measures._

_"You got any recovery items?"_

_"Heh, my bad. I've already used them all, fighting off the other battles."_

_"Right, no worries. I've got you covered." Yuu concluded that he would have to save his OP for only Recovery Bullets. He would just have to rely on his Blade-mode to take on the Corrosive Hannibal._

_Getting up on his hind legs, the Corrosive Hannibal began to form fire blades from its arms._

_"Crap. You wouldn't happen to have any Stun Grenades, would you?"_

_"Oh yeah! I totally have Stun Grenades!" Yuu happily exclaimed in realization, quickly dropping one down before the Corrosive Hannibal could go through with its attack._

_"Now!" Lindow instructed as he went in for the attack while the Aragami was temporarily stunned. _

_Not missing a beat, Yuu joined in as well. Getting in a good hit, Yuu had knocked the Corrosive Hannibal off its feet. Giving Lindow the chance to go in for a Devouring bite._

_"Okay, dig in!" Lindow commanded as he went into a burst. Yuu continued to whack at the Corrosive Hannibal's face while it was still down. Refusing to stop, even for a Devouring bite. That time stopping for the process, is time spent biting into the Hannibal's health. He couldn't afford to lose that time._

_Yuu was starting to get reckless, taking damage from attacks that he could've easily dodged, but was too busy striking at the Corrosive Hannibal. The attacks that he did block with his shield barely made it in time before the Aragami made impact. During the process, Yuu had already used two more Stun Grenades to stop the Corrosive Hannibal from doing its flame blade attack, and he was starting to run low. Refusing to relent, even at the bite in his health, Yuu continued to slash until he had the Corrosive Hannibal rolling on its side as it held its arm in pain._

_"Pretty spectacular." Lindow praised at Yuu as he took out the Corrosive Hannibal's gauntlet._

_Already on its feet again, the Corrosive Hannibal was enraged. Once again, Yuu had to use two more Stun Grenades to stop the dark Hannibal's damaging fire blade attack. However, he did not have enough time to prevent the third one, taking the hard blow of the burning blades he wasn't able to dodge. Eating away one of his dwindling Recovery Pill II, Yuu jumped into the fray again. Pretty soon all his Stun Grenades were gone. But luckily, Yuu has slashed off the Corrosive Hannibal's face armor soon after. And the final double blow from the both of them had taken down the Corrosive Hannibal right after that._

_"Ahh, it's over." Yuu sighed as they both went to extract the core once the Corrosive Hannibal fell down to the floor._

_"Sorry but I can't lose easily." Lindow lightly taunted to the fallen Aragami, out of breath._

_But just as they thought it was all finally over, the Corrosive Hannibal began to melt into a boiling tar-like substance that began to boil and expand over the church floor. Not wanting the substance to touch them, they began to back away._

_"Jeez... this thing that's taken a liking to me sure is a nuisance. It's like it's determined not to let me go..." Lindow commented before turning to look at Yuu. "Hey, you're the one who gave me that order... so stay with me tile the end, alright?"_

_"Right."_

_"Here it comes!" Lindow shouted as a colossal Corrosive Hannibal resurfaced, its size was overwhelming. It began to fill them with doubt._

_Suddenly both its fists came at them, it took all the strength they had to just block and even more than that to keep him from breaking through._

_"Arhhh!"_

_"Lindow, we've gotta hang on!" Yuu insisted, but it wasn't looking good for them when the Corrosive Hannibal shot three black flame spears at Lindow from its mouth._

_"I'm... I'm going home alive. No matter what!"_

_"That's right." Ren called out to them from Lindow's God Arc. "Alright then... Lindow."_

_Lindow's God Arc began to glow gold again and then split into two, the second one flying out of his hands to take the spears for him. As this happened both our God Arcs began to glow and the piece that took the shots for Lindow turned... into Ren. The spears impaled his middle._

_"!" Yuu gasped in concern as the the corrosive spears pierced through Ren like meat on a pike. _

_"So you're... my...?!"_

_"Lindow... we're finally getting the chance to talk to each other." Ren's arms were stretched out, blocking the Aragami from the other two, and his voice sounded transparent. "I was never able to tell you before, but this is the one thing I wanted to tell you."_

_He closed his eyes as he spoke. "I remember it all. Your fears, your grief, how you left your comrades..." Then he opened his eyes again as he looked upon Lindow warmly. "So they'd be saved. I'm proud to have fought with you all this time, Lindow... thank you."_

_"So am I. Since I've become a Gods Eater, you've always saved me. I can't thank you enough..."_

_Ren gave Lindow one of his cute smiles, overjoyed to hear those words come out of Lindow's mouth. "It's enough... You've rewarded me more than enough." _

_Ren curled into a ball then reopened, releasing a bright blast that destroyed the Aragami and left the area glowing with a warm light. Making the place far more friendlier than it was before. Coming down to his feet, Ren went to addressed Yuu._

_"Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I made it this far because of you."_

_"Ren..." Yuu couldn't help but smiled at him. Once again, Ren had showed up to save the day.  
_

_"I enjoyed my time with you. I even felt it would be okay to live on... as your God Arc. Oh, and that juice was delicious... Much, much tastier than Aragami... Thank you."_

_"We'll have to have some more someday." He smiled at that, hoping that Yuu's words would come true, once this was all over. But then he turned to address both Yuu and Lindow._

_"I'm so glad... I got to meet you... my friends." He started to glow brighter and transparent. Something about this told the other guys that this meant that their time in this place was running out. "Ah... I wish I could stay and talk to you more. Talking makes me feel so warm. I loved it. Yes... I think it's about time to go." Ren then he walked closer to Lindow. "Bye... See you around?"_

_He offered his hand to Lindow hoping to complete a dream that he wished to achieve for such a long time. Not leaving his hand hanging for long, Lindow took Ren's outstretched hand with a firm grip. "Thanks... partner. See you around... see you again soon."_

_Then they were all wrapped in a bright light that warmed them into a peaceful sleep._

_"Bye, Ren..." Yuu says before falling to sleep. "Let's meet again soon..."_

_"Yes... after my nap."_

_.xxxxx._

The others didn't know what to make of it. Their leader had just went bat crazy, sneaking out Lindow's God Arc from the Den to happily use to rip a Aragami's head in two with his own God Arc, then went on to _punch_ said Aragami's core. All three of them were consumed by the boiling black tar substance of the dying Oracle Cells of the Corrosive Hannibal, only for Lindow and Yuu to appear just fine out of a golden light that burnt through the boiling tar.

Both of them were unconscious, but they looked to be in a peaceful slumber. Lindow had seemed to be back to normal, aside from the Aragami arm that had taken over his right arm. But it seemed to be stable as the same golden light from before glowed in the shard that was embedded in the back of his palm.

Getting over the initial shock, they all ran over to the unconscious brawlers to make sure they were okay. The Defense Team ran over to check on Lindow, while the Offense Team went over to Yuu. Shaking him, Sakuya continued to call out to Lindow to try and wake him up.

"Lindow... Lindow? Lindow?! Are you alright?" Sakuya called to him, pleading to the stars in the sky that he was alright.

"Easy, Sakuya... you'll wake up the dead at that rate..." Lindow tiredly teased at her with a smirk and half opened eyes.

"Lindow..." She began to sob in joy as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him for dear life. Smiling warmly at the feel of her close to him, Lindow tiredly lifted an arm to wrap around her. Happy inside to the core that she didn't flinch when it was his Aragami arm that touched her.

"Well that's one idiot up." Soma huffed in good humor before poking a finger into Yuu's side. "What about this one."

"Shake him." Karen advised.

"Nay, let's stick one of our socks in his face. The smell should shock him awake." Shōkan added in, adding an evil laugh in for good gesture.

"Wait... who are they?" Lindow ask, quirking an eyebrow up at the unfamiliar faces.

"Hello," Shōkan raised her hand in greeting. "You'll meet us later. Now about that sock business?"

"There's no way in hell I'm gonna take off my sock." Soma shot back at her, standing a firm ground.

"Seconded." Karen added in, denying Shōkan's request.

"Jeez, fine. I'll use my own sock." Shōkan gruffed as she went to take off her shoe. "You guys are poor sports. Looks like I'll have to take one for the cause."

"Ugh, no need." Yuu groaned out as he put out a hand to stop Shōkan from taking off her shoe.

"Welcome back, and just in time to save yourself." Soma greeted with a slight smirk about what could've just happened if Yuu hadn't woken up a second sooner.

"Jeez, and I take that you wouldn't have saved me."

"Heh, not a chance."

"(Sigh) Great... So am I in trouble?"

"A lot." Alisa said sternly before easing up. "But I guess we can forgive for it sense you brought Lindow back okay."

"Tsubaki says your off the hook if you both came back alive. Sooo, that a win-win for you." Kota pointed out.

"Heh, awesome..." Yuu sighed out in slight relief as he rested his head back down on the floor and just looked up to the sky.

"Let's get you guys home." Sakuya suggested as she started to help Lindow onto his feet, Kota had went to support Lindow on the other side.

"Wait... I'm not leaving Ren behind..." Lindow said, resisting them as they started to walk away toward the exit area.

"Ren?" Sakuya looked at him confused, not having any idea of what or who he was talking about.

"I got him..." Yuu tired said to Lindow before taking off his jacket and gathering all of Lindow's God Arc pieces inside it. Zipping it up and using its arm sleeves to wrap the jacket up and close all of its holes, Yuu lifted his arm to hand the makeshift jacket-bag over to Alisa. "Here... make sure he gets home okay..."

"Okay..." Alisa confirmed, not really understanding what was going on. But Yuu had honestly requested this of her, so she would see to it that it was done.

"Can you get up?" Soma asked down to his leader still on the cold floor, his God Arc tightly in hand.

"Hell no." Yuu groaned out in exhaustion. "I'm so tired I can't even feel my legs."

"Right, course." Soma groaned out at his predicament as he struggled to lift up Yuu onto the support of his shoulder. "What a load of baggage you are."

"Soma what are you doing? Keep Yuu off his feet." Sakuya instructed to Soma in medic mode.

"What? _You're_ not keeping Lindow off his feet."

"That's cause I'm not strong enough to carry Lindow like that. Especially in these heels. Now get him off those feet."

"Tst, can't one of the rookies carry him then?"

"(Gasp) You would have young ladies carry an injured man while your hands are free? Shame on you, Soma. That is not the manly thing to do."

"Tst, fine!" Soma growled, rougly grabbing under Yuu's knees and lifting them up into his arms.

"Heh, that's right... carry me like a princess..." Yuu tiredly messed with Soma with a grin, making the poor boys vein pop out on his forehead.

"You should drop him." Shōkan teasingly suggested to Soma as her and Karen followed beside him as cover while they all moved to leave.

"Heh, that actually sounds appealing right now." Soma replied back with a smirk.

*** Co-Author's Notes ***

As with most sword styles/schools, Empty Sky Sword also follows the tenets (or virtues) of bushido.

7 virtues of Bushido

1. Rectitude (gi)

- righteousness as a consequence of being honorable and honest.

2. Courage (yuu)

- self-explanatory.

3. Benevolence (jin)

- disposition, attitude or inclination to do good

4. Respect (rei)

- again, self-explanatory; just like the remaining three.

5. Honesty (makoto)

6. Honor (meiyo)

7. Loyalty (chuugi)

Associated virtues

1. Filial piety (kou)

2. Wisdom (chi)

3. Care for the aged (tei)

As a side note, Karen doesn't really feel too inclined to follow the virtues of Bushido if it involves Shun; however, her rigorous training keeps her from turning away when he is in need.


End file.
